Jillian Anable

Smarter Choices: Assessing the Potential to Achieve Traffic Reduction Using ‘Soft Measures’

Abstract In recent years, there has been a growing interest in a range of transport policy initiatives which are designed to influence people’s travel behaviour away from single‐occupancy car use and towards more benign and efficient options, through a combination of marketing, information, incentives and tailored new services. In transport policy discussions, these are now widely described as ‘soft’ factor interventions or ‘smarter choice’ measures or ‘mobility management’ tools. In 2004, the UK Department for Transport commissioned a major study to examine whether large‐scale programmes of these measures could potentially deliver substantial cuts in car use. The purpose of this article is to clarify the approach taken in the study, the types of evidence reviewed and the overall conclusions reached. In summary, the results suggested that, within approximately ten years, smarter choice measures have the potential to reduce national traffic levels by about 11%, with reductions of up to 21% of peak period urban traffic. Moreover, they represent relatively good value for money, with schemes potentially generating benefit:cost ratios which are in excess of 10:1. The central conclusion of the study was that such measures could play a very significant role in addressing traffic, given the right support and policy context.

The UK transport carbon model: An integrated life cycle approach to explore low carbon futures

Current debate focuses on the need for the transport sector to contribute to more ambitious carbon emission reduction targets. In the UK, various macro-economic and energy system wide, top-down models are used to explore the potential for energy demand and carbon emissions reduction in the transport sector. These models can lack the bottom-up, sectoral detail needed to simulate the effects of integrated demand and supply-side policy strategies to reduce emissions. Bridging the gap between short-term forecasting and long-term scenario “models”, this paper introduces a newly developed strategic transport, energy, emissions and environmental impacts model, the UK Transport Carbon Model (UKTCM). The UKTCM covers the range of transport–energy–environment issues from socio-economic and policy influences on energy demand reduction through to life cycle carbon emissions and external costs. The model is demonstrated in this paper by presenting the results of three single policies and one policy package scenario. Limitations of the model are also discussed. Developed under the auspices of the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) the UKTCM can be used to develop transport policy scenarios that explore the full range of technological, fiscal, regulatory and behavioural change policy interventions to meet UK climate change and energy security goals.

Promoting physical activity and reducing climate change: Opportunities to replace short car trips with active transportation

Automobile use is a significant contributor to climate change, local air pollution, pedestrian injuries and deaths, declines in physical activity and obesity. A significant proportion of car use is for short trips that can relatively easily be taken with active transportation options--walking or cycling--or with public transportation. In this commentary, we review a number of immediate, practical opportunities to implement policies and programs that reduce short car trips and increase active transportation.

Same question, different answer: a comparison of GIS-based journey time accessibility with self-reported measures from the national travel survey in England

Acknowledgements This paper is based on research undertaken as part of the PhD of the first author and was presented in an earlier form at the 50th European Regional Science Association Annual Congress, Jonkoping, 2010. We would like to thank two anonymous reviewers and the special issue editor, Karst Geurs, for helpful feedback which has improved this paper.

Consumer structure in the emerging market for electric vehicles: Identifying market segments using cluster analysis

ABSTRACT This paper presents results from a segmentation analysis of the emerging market for Electric Vehicles (EVs). Data has been sourced through the application of a self-completion household questionnaire distributed over two cities in the United Kingdom (UK). A two stage cluster analysis methodology has been followed to identify market segments in a dataset of UK drivers. Five unique segments have been identified in the analysis and are characterised by their preferences for EVs, socio-economic characteristics, current car details, and psychographic profiles. These segments hold a range of different EV preference levels, from those who appear unwilling to adopt an EV to those which are clearly attracted to EVs. Moreover, the features of these segments suggest that segments might be attracted to or repelled from EVs for different reasons. These results demonstrate that a significant degree of consumer stratification is present in the emerging market for EVs, with the possible implication being that policy interventions at the segment as opposed to market, level may prove more effective due to their ability to cater for the nuances of important segments.

Techniques for the inference of mileage rates from MOT data

Abstract Mathematical and computational techniques are developed for the processing and analysis of annual Ministry of Transport roadworthiness (MOT) test data that the UK Department for Transport has placed in the public domain. First, techniques are given that clean erroneous records and a linking procedure is provided that permits the inference of an individual vehicles mileage between consecutive tests. Methods are then developed that analyse aggregate mileage totals, as a function of vehicle age, class and geography. The inference of aggregate mileage rates as a function of time is then considered.

Active travel intervention and physical activity behaviour: An evaluation

A physically active lifestyle is an important contributor to individual health and well-being. The evidence linking higher physical activity levels with better levels of morbidity and mortality is well understood. Despite this, physical inactivity remains a major global risk factor for mortality and, consequently, encouraging individuals to pursue physically active lifestyles has been an integral part of public health policy in many countries. Physical activity promotion and interventions are now firmly on national health policy agendas, including policies that promote active travel such as walking and cycling. This study evaluates one such active travel initiative, the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme in Scotland, intended to encourage uptake of walking, cycling and the use of public transport as more active forms of travel. House to house surveys were conducted before and after the programme intervention, in May/June 2009 and 2012 (12,411 surveys in 2009 and 9542 in 2012), for the evaluation of the programme. This paper analyses the physical activity data collected, focussing on what can be inferred from the initiative with regards to adult uptake of physical activity participation and whether, for those who participated in physical activity, the initiative impacted on meeting recommended physical activity guidelines. The results suggest that the initiative impacted positively on the likelihood of physical activity participation and meeting the recommended physical activity guidelines. Individuals in the intervention areas were on average 6% more likely to meet the physical activity guidelines compared to individuals in the non intervention areas. However, the absolute prevalence of physical activity participation declined in both intervention and control areas over time. Our evaluation of this active transport initiative indicates that similar programmes may aid in contributing to achieving physical activity targets and adds to the international evidence base on the benefits of active travel interventions.

Energy saving obligations and white certificates: ideas and considerations for the transport sector

ABSTRACT A lot of policy interest and analysis has been focused on energy saving obligations on energy distributors or suppliers (mainly electricity and gas) coupled with trading of certified energy savings via tradable white certificates. While in the European Union the Energy Services Directive (2006/32/EC) also applies to transport fuels and some of the existing energy saving obligations allow certification of savings from transport projects, as of the end of 2009 no EU Member State has energy saving obligations on transport fuel distributors. The article explores the application of energy saving obligations in road transport, discussing the imposition of energy saving obligations on transport fuel suppliers, the definition of eligible technologies and projects, and considering energy saving obligations as a stand-alone tool or integrated with existing electricity and gas obligations. The article intends to open further discussion and research on the topic.

Demanding Business Travel: The Evolution of the Timespaces of Business Practice

To date, virtual ways of working have yet to substantially reduce demand for business travel. Emerging research claims that virtual and physical work complement rather than substitute for one another. This suggests travel demand stems from business strategies and achieving business outcomes. In building on these ideas, this chapter draws upon Schatzki’s conception of timespace to capture changes in how two UK-based global construction and engineering consulting firms organise work and the implications in terms of demand for business travel. Over time, particular forms of spatially stretched organisations which have developed are found to require the interweaving of timespaces through travel. As such, how each firm has evolved has in turn created the contemporary situation of significant and hard to reduce demand for travel.

The curious death – And life? – of British transport policy

This article analyses the transport policy record of the 2010–2015 Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition and 2015–2016 Conservative majority UK governments. We argue that the style of policy making under these administrations departed significantly from that of previous decades, which had been characterised by the ascendancy of specific technical disciplines and decision-making norms about how transport planning should be carried out. Our key contention is that despite abandoning the idea of a single, overall narrative for transport policy, these governments (perhaps unwittingly) gave new life to broader debates about what transport investment is actually for and how investment decisions should be made. We interpret this as a shift away from the longstanding idea of a ‘deliberate’ strategy of intervention to a more ‘emergent’ approach, which raises important new questions about the future of transport policy both in terms of the objectives it seeks to realise and the relative influence of professional/technical and political actors in the policy process.