Scientific Research about Climate Change Mitigation in Transport : A critical review

Peer reviewedPostprin

The road to happiness : from mood during leisure trips and activities to satisfaction with life

Over the past years an increasing number of studies have investigated the link between travel and subjective well-being (SWB), often focussing on the effects of trip characteristics on satisfaction with particular trips. Two elements not frequently addressed in this research domain are (i) how trip satisfaction affects the mood during – and the evaluation of − the activity at the destination of the trip and (ii) how travel can affect long-term well-being. As engagement in out-of-home activities can improve eudaimonic well-being − referring to meaning of life, self-development and social relationships − it is possible that travel (satisfaction) does not only affect the overall evaluation of people’s lives (i.e., life satisfaction), but also eudaimonic well-being, through activity participation and satisfaction. In this study we will analyse the effect of satisfaction with leisure trips on the satisfaction with the leisure activity at the destination of the trip and look at how satisfaction with these short-term activity episodes affect both eudaimonic well-being and life satisfaction. Results of this study applying a structural equation modelling approach on 1,212 respondents from the city of Ghent (Belgium) indicate that spill-over effects exist from trip satisfaction on leisure activity satisfaction and that both these short-term satisfactions affect eudaimonic well-being and life satisfaction, whether directly or indirectly

Shopping online and/or in-store? A structural equation model of the relationships between e-shopping and in-store shopping

Searching product information or buying goods online is becoming increasingly popular and could affect shopping trips. However, the relationship between e-shopping and in-store shopping is currently unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate empirically how the frequencies of online searching, online buying, and non-daily shopping trips relate to each other, after controlling for sociodemographic, land use, behavioral, and attitudinal characteristics. Data were collected from 826 respondents residing in four municipalities (one urban, three suburban) in the center of the Netherlands, using a shopping survey. Structural Equation Modeling was used to give insight in the mutual dependencies of the endogenous variables, and in direct and indirect effects between variables. The findings suggest that complementarity or generation between e-shopping and in-store shopping seems to be more likely to occur than substitution. The more often people search online, the more shopping trips they tend to make. Frequent in-store shoppers also buy frequently online. Shop accessibility has a negative effect on the frequency of online searching; the more shops are nearby, the less often persons search online. However, shop accessibility influences the frequency of online buying positively; the more shops are nearby, the more often persons buy online. Urbanisation level affects e-shopping indirectly via Internet use: urban residents shop online more often than suburban residents do, because urban residents use the Internet more often.

The impact of metropolitan structure on commute behavior in the Netherlands: a multilevel approach

The effect of decentralization of land uses on travel behavior remains an unresolved issue in the academic literature. Some US researchers argue that a tendency towards polycentrism is associated with decreasing commute times and distances. Others have, however, suggested and shown the opposite commute times and distances tend to be longer in polycentric than in monocentric urban areas. Using this controversy as a starting point, we analyse how monocentric and polycentric urban structures affect commuting in the Netherlands with data from the 1998 National Travel Survey. Four kinds of urban systems are distinguished: one monocentric and three polycentric systems. In contrast to most previous work, we use multilevel regression analysis to take adequate account of the effects of individual and household attributes. The results indicate that urban structure influences most dimensions of commuting considered here. Yet, individual and household level variables are more important determinants than characteristics of the residential and workplace environment. Gender, household type and their interaction effects remain important determinants of commute behavior in the Netherlands; particularly women in two-earner households commute less than average. Education and income are both positively related to the amount of commuting. Further, the effects of mono- and polycentrism on commuting are more complicated than the literature makes us believe. When individual and household level factors are taken account of, polycentrism does not always result in more efficient commute patterns than monocentric urban structures: in most polycentric urban areas commute distances and times are longer than in monocentric ones. Only when polycentric regions consist of several relatively independent and self-contained development nodes are commute distances shorter than elsewhere. Commute times are in that case comparable to those in monocentric urban areas. The impact of urban structure disappears when commute time is related to the time spent on work activities; the ratio between commute time and work duration is not much affected by the type of urban system in which workers reside. The fact that commute times and distances are not lower in polycentric urban areas may be attributed to the specific situation in the Netherlands: strong spatial planning policies may have obstructed the relocation of employment and housing in close proximity of each other. However, the longer commute in most policentric regions may also indicate that workers and their households not always behave as urban economic theory predicts. In any case, the results show that it is necessary to distinguish several types of polycentric systems instead of merely using a dichotomy of monocentric and polycentric in the analysis of commuting.

Sociotechnical expectations of vehicle automation in the UK trucking sector

Expectations about emerging innovations are an important part of innovation pathways that can help to overcome uncertainties and build hype. Such sociotechnical expectations have been studied extensively by social scientists but the focus is often on collective, widely shared expectations and much less on individuals’ specific expectations. Examining the latter can nonetheless aid understanding of the development of, buy-in into and power dynamics around collective sociotechnical expectations. This paper therefore examines individually articulated expectations about vehicle automation in trucking in the UK. It draws on 61 in-depth interviews with freight transport actors, including truck drivers, freight company management, industry representatives, and government departments. It demonstrates alignment of individual expectations on some aspects of vehicle automation, including the difficulty of expression them in terms of chronological (calendar) time and the belief that automation will be quicker and easier on motorways than on other kinds of road. Multiple differences in expectations are identified, in particular regarding the practical feasibility of truck platooning and the role of truck drivers. In all cases, it is clear that individual expectations are shaped strongly by people’s current and past professional experience and practices and how these have been affected by wider technological and organisational changes in the freight and logistics sector

Organizations as users in sustainability transitions: embedding vehicle-to-grid technology in the United Kingdom

This study explores organizations as users of innovations in sustainability transitions. Existing literature concentrates on organizations that are producers in energy-intensive sectors. And yet, transitions also greatly affect organizations as users of innovations in everyday contexts. We develop a lens on organizational embedding of technological innovations during transitions using social practice theory and neoinstitutional theory. In this view, innovation embedding involves dynamics between innovation, organization and wider context. Empirically, the study considers how Vehicle-to-Grid Electric Vehicles (V2G-EVs) can be embedded in the fleet management practices of organizations. V2G-EVs deliver electricity back to the grid, and could provide an important contribution to a future electricity grid based on intermittent renewables. The study draws on interviews with fleet sector practitioners, conducted as part of a trial project to explore the potential role and uptake of V2G-EVs in organizational fleets in the United Kingdom. The findings highlight how, in innovation embedding, developments in everyday practices and organizational environments are inherently linked. During embedding, organizations follow different pathways. A sustainability pathway, a market-sustainability pathway and a professional-sustainability pathway are identified, and are shown to enhance and hinder embedding with and through their particular dynamics. The paper demonstrates the added value of jointly considering everyday organizational practices and wider system-level developments when studying innovation embedding during transitions

The expected speed and impacts of vehicle automation in passenger and freight transport: a Dissensus Delphi study among UK professionals

Vehicle automation is one of the most researched topics in transport studies but much remains uncertain about the speed of adoption and potential impacts, including if and how it can contribute to greater environmental sustainability. This study adopts a Delphi approach to examine the speed with which 15% of new vehicles will be automated (SAE-3, SAE-4 or SAE-5) and what impacts automation may have on motility, mobility, resource use and externalities in both passenger and freight transport. Although challenges with recruitment mean that all findings must be caveated and seen as exploratory, the analysis demonstrates considerable dissensus regarding the expected speed and impacts of vehicle automation in both passenger and freight transport among the participants. For both aspects, a diversity of views remains once participants were informed about the expectations of other panellists. The range of views is organised around the axes of optimism and certainty about what may happen. Considerable differences between passenger and freight transport can be identified for potential impacts of vehicle automation but not for speed of adoption

Organizations as users in sustainability transitions : Embedding Vehicle-to-Grid technology in the United Kingdom

This study explores organizations as users of innovations in sustainability transitions. Existing literature concentrates on organizations that are producers in energy-intensive sectors. And yet, transitions also greatly affect organizations as users of innovations in everyday contexts. We develop a lens on organizational embedding of technological innovations during transitions using social practice theory and neoinstitutional theory. In this view, innovation embedding involves dynamics between innovation, organization and wider context. Empirically, the study considers how Vehicle-to-Grid Electric Vehicles (V2G-EVs) can be embedded in the fleet management practices of organizations. V2G-EVs deliver electricity back to the grid, and could provide an important contribution to a future electricity grid based on intermittent renewables. The study draws on interviews with fleet sector practitioners, conducted as part of a trial project to explore the potential role and uptake of V2G-EVs in organizational fleets in the United Kingdom. The findings highlight how, in innovation embedding, developments in everyday practices and organizational environments are inherently linked. During embedding, organizations follow different pathways. A sustainability pathway, a market-sustainability pathway and a professional-sustainability pathway are identified, and are shown to enhance and hinder embedding with and through their particular dynamics. The paper demonstrates the added value of jointly considering everyday organizational practices and wider system-level developments when studying innovation embedding during transitions