Road Pricing and Older People: An In-depth Study of Attitudes, Pro-Social Values and Social Norms.

Understanding the socio-psychological mechanisms that determine the public acceptability of road pricing could be a key for its implementation in urban environments where this is a viable scenario. Studying the attitudes of older people is of particular importance due to the ageing of the populations in the industrialised democracies, the high political engagement of older people, and their vulnerability to transport-related social exclusion. Research by the present authors had previously identified that older people's beliefs about what is the normal, acceptable, or even expected choice in a particular social context (“social norms”) and their tendency to favour, more than any other age group, what is positively valued by society (“pro-social value orientation”) affect their attitudes to road pricing. The present paper aims to develop an in-depth understanding of these attitude-shaping determinants drawing on the findings of focus groups conducted in Bristol, UK. The findings suggest that there are three distinctive expressions of pro-sociality: pro-environmental values and generativity on the one hand, these two being drivers of support for road pricing, and pro-equity values on the other, which tend to drive opposition. Social norms have two particular expressions: subjective norms (i.e. norms reflecting people’s immediate social environment) and norms referring to others and society in general. Furthermore, a theory-driven thematic analysis indicates that trust in the integrity of the concept and older age as a life stage associated with ageing, retirement, lower income, mobility barriers and deteriorating health are important in how attitudes reflecting and affecting public acceptability to road pricing form

European perspectives on a new fiscal framework for transport

This chapter presents an overview of changes in transport taxation in European countries to promote more sustainable transport. A number of changes in the framework of car taxation have resulted in some useful environmental gains. However, these changes are limited because the transport tax system has been designed to produce a substantial income from internal-combustion-engine vehicles in an easily administered form. A major restructuring of transport taxation is required to fully address a different goal – that of stimulating improvements to environmental performance. A generalised road user charging-based system could be the way forward. Such a system is now seen by several European countries and some USA states as the transport taxation regime for the 21st century. Tax regime change is emerging onto the transport policy agenda as a vital long-term strategy. Largely by default, transport policy-makers are coming to realise that road taxation regime change is inevitable if traffic and congestion management is to be a reality. The way we taxed vehicles and fuel in the 20th century is simply not appropriate for the transport challenges we face today

Adapting the Dutch 'mobility explorer' program to investigate possible car taxation futures in the UK

This paper reports work being conducted as part of the only transport project in the current ESRC programme on the Environment and Human Behaviour. The concept of generalised road user changes eventually replacing existing Fuel Duties and Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is in the ascendant, with several studies concentrating upon the eventual adoption of a GPS-based congestion charging system. The Dutch and Swiss have also been exploring such schemes. In particular the Dutch have looked at a more quickly and easily implemented option of distance charging rather than congestion charging that is favoured in the UK. This project seeks to explore a wider range of new taxation options, particularly seeking more pragmatic paths towards early implementation rather than the 10 – 20 year timescale currently envisaged. Indeed, the Dutch studies have suggested that distance charging might yield most of the traffic management and emission reduction benefits of congestion charging, with a modelled reduction in car kilometres travelled of between 18 and 35 per cent compared with a ‘business as usual’ base case. In this project, the Dutch Mobility Explorer program that was used to estimate the effects of a national distance charge, is being adapted using UK data to investigate a series of possible car taxation futures. These range from a low-key introduction of a distance charge to replace VED, through to a distance charging system replacing fuel tax and VED and a GPS congestion charging system. This will permit a comparison of the traffic, congestion and emission reductions between such options and also a cross-country comparison on a comparable basis with the existing Dutch work. The adaptation of the Dutch model to the UK has not been straightforward, and possibly the greatest lessons have been in helping to understand the differences in context in which a seemingly similar transport policy measure is being proposed. The paper concludes with a reflection upon the rapid rise in favour by the UK government for of generalised road user changes to replace Fuel Duties and VED. It is suggested that this is not a way to avoid hard decisions in transport policy that it may at first seem

Why do demand responsive transport systems fail?

In developed countries, Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) (loosely termed 'paratransit' in US parlance) emerged in the 1970s to serve the specialist niche market of people with mobility difficulties. DRT systems are starting become a mainstream public transport mode and this paper examines mainstream public transport DRT schemes from around the world that have failed, in order to identify the reasons for failure, and draw lessons to help prevent similar outcomes occurring. Research for the Intermode study developed detailed cases of 72 DRT projects. A number of key failed cases are reported together with a note of the lessons that each provides. This is followed by a generic analysis of failure factors based on a marketing approach. It is concluded that DRT projects are often not realistically costed or designed with a full understanding of the market they are to serve. There is a very dangerous temptation to offer too flexible a service and to include costly technological systems, when they may not be needed. An incremental approach, if possible, appears sensible. DRT also requires more marketing effort and skills than is traditional in conventional bus operations, but above all, it requires new skills in working in partnership. It is concluded that the latter area is where the root of DRT failure is often to be found

Bristol to Bath Railway Path User Survey: Walking Route to Whitehall Primary School

Whitehall Primary School in Easton, Bristol has recently benefitted from improvements to its walking routes as part of the Sustrans Links to Schools Project. One particular aspect of these improvements and a focus of this report are a new informal zebra crossing and warning lights on the walking route where it crosses the Bristol to Bath Railway Path. This crossing has been identified as exhibiting conflict between different types of user, and in particular between school children crossing the path and commuter cyclists travelling towards Bristol city centre in the morning peak. This report presents findings from a survey of path users which sought their opinions and experiences of using the infrastructure in safety terms, and the perceived impact of the two additional measures on path safety

Car clubs in new developments

This report provides a review of good practice and the experiences of key local authorities in implementing car free and low car developments over the ten-year period 2003-2014. It found that car clubs are more likely to be successfully established within a development (or in a neighbourhood adjacent to a development) if consideration is given early enough in the planning process to its viability as a location. In evaluating this, there are several key factors which help to identify where car clubs might be successfully established in new developments. These include: population density, PTAL rating and availability of public transport, parking constraints, car ownership levels and other cultural and socioeconomic/demographic characteristics

Understanding the mobility-transformative qualities of urban park and ride polices in the UK and the Netherlands

Park and Ride (P+R) has emerged as a key element of the sustainable mobility packages of many urban areas in Europe. The present article explores the impact of the introduction of P+R on urban car mobility,especially its potential transformative impact, in two of the densest European states: the UK and the Netherlands. An analysis of six case-studies (i.e., cities)showed a degree of disconnect between stated policy aims and implementation in practice, and in some of the cases this difference was substantial. No obvious national contextual factor explaining implementation success was identified: in both contexts the (local) political will and practical tools to ensure transfer of parking capacity to P+R, were the key factors. The overall car restraining effect of P&R hoped for was mostly not achieved – mainly due to transfer from public transport-only trips and from cycling and because overall parking supply across city centres increased

The effectiveness of park-and-ride as a policy measure for more sustainable mobility

© 2014 by Emerald Group Publishing Limited All rights of reproduction in any form reserved. Purpose-The chapter provides a general review of the policy debate around the provision of formal Park-and-Ride (P&R) facilities and the empirical research evidence about travellers’ responses to the opportunities they present, drawing on evidence from the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. The effects of the schemes on road traffic and car dependence are considered. Design/methodology/approach-The different ways in which private vehicles and public transport are combined during journeys are reviewed. The position of P&R is considered as a modal variant within a ‘sociotechnical system’ competing with the more established journey options of fully private and fully public transport. Scenarios which can maximise the traffic reduction and sustainable development potential of P&R are examined. Findings-The review of the policy context establishes that a range of policy objectives are conceived for P&R depending on different professional and citizen perspectives. There is partial understanding amongst local authorities about the effectiveness with which P&R addresses the range of objectives in practice. The key travel behavioural findings are that only a portion of P&R users’ car trips are shortened. Hence, overall increases in car use occur, combined with overall reductions in public transport use, and in some cases less active travel. Where dedicated public transport services are operated, these are also a further source of additional traffic. Practical implications-P&R implementations are generally successful where they are explicitly for providing more parking for economic growth or traffic management reasons, rather than to enhance sustainable mobility. The essential conditions for traffic reduction to occur in future are a strategic subregional integrated parking and public transport strategy which achieves interception of car trips early and ensures public transport services remain attractive for a range of access modes. Originality/value-The chapter provides a synthesis of work by a number of leading authors on the topic and includes elements of originality in the combination of the established knowledge, the addition of novel insights, and in overall interpretation

Driven to excess: Impacts of motor vehicles on the quality of life of residents of three streets in Bristol UK

Quality of life in cities and towns is of increasing concern to the public, and to policymakers. A major threat to quality of life is the high volume of motor vehicle traffic, associated with a wide range of mental and physical health detriments arising from immediate, local impacts such as air and noise pollution, road deaths and injuries, as well as global, longer term effects, such as the destabilisation of Earth‟s climate. The article reports on an investigation into the impacts of traffic on quality of life in a residential area of Bristol (UK), a city which in the British context is particularly car dependent. In essence the study replicated Appleyard‟s (1969) research on traffic and neighbourhood social interaction. Primary data were collected through observations and a series of interviews with 60 households on three streets selected for their contrasting levels of traffic.The results confirmed that Appleyard‟s findings are applicable to the UK in the 21st century; specifically that the number of friends and acquaintances reported by residents was significantly lower on streets with higher volumes of motor traffic. The extent of people's home territories also diminished as motor traffic increased. Other notable outcomes from the research include the finding that individuals' perceptions of road safety in their neighbourhood may be disproportionately influenced by the traffic conditions on their street of residence, especially affecting the degree of independence granted to children. The findings are considered against the context of existing policy solutions to reduce traffic impacts, leading to the conclusion that the tools exist to reclaim urban residential neighbourhoods from traffic, but this will require considerable political will