Tax and green transport plans: a survey of UK experience

The widespread adoption of Green Transport Plans (GTPs) by employers has become an important aim of the UK government transport policy as it tries to find ways of reducing transport demand. However, the tax treatment of employee benefits that form part of many GTPs has been identified by the government and others as a potential barrier to their adoption. Based on telephone interviews with employers and meetings with tax and transport experts, this paper confirms this perception. It also explains precisely how tax forms a barrier to GTP implementation, reviews the approaches taken to this problem in three other countries and makes outline proposals for reform and further research.     

Transport geography and new European realities: a critique

The main aim of this paper is to offer a brief evaluation of recent transport geography research and publication. It examines critical observations on the sub-discipline from the past two decades, and endeavours to illustrate how the engagement of transport geography belies at least some criticisms. Arguing that both ‘positivist’ and ‘new mobilities’ approaches have validity in a transport geography research agenda, the paper goes onto exemplify this through brief discussions of areas where transport geography could gain a higher profile and where clear mutual benefit would result from greater engagement, notably, at the interface between transport and tourism, focusing on mobilities in post-transition Central and Eastern Europe and climate change issues. Finally, conclusions are drawn and suggestions are made to inform a transport geography research agenda.     

Using the land-use planning process to secure travel plans: an assessment of progress in England to date

A travel plan is a package of measures implemented by an organisation to encourage people who travel to/from that organisation to do so by means other than driving alone by private car. This paper advances two principal arguments: firstly, that the planning system and maximum parking standards as part of it are the main factors leading to travel plan development in England today; and, secondly, that the difficulties of using the planning system in this way means that there is a risk that many of these travel plans are unlikely to have a great deal of influence on travel patterns, making it more unlikely that they will achieve the predicted impact on travel behaviour change, as contained in the important study and report “Smarter Choices” (Department for Transport, 2004).This paper presents results from a survey of planning and transport authorities in England, which obtained a 62% response rate from the 139 authorities contacted. It also uses the results of 18 interviews with local authority and Highways Agency staff involved in securing travel plans through the planning process. The survey found that the planning process (as opposed to voluntary efforts) is indeed the main means by which travel plans are now secured. In addition, maximum parking standards were shown to have a major influence on travel plan formation for organisations going through the planning process. There are however reasons to doubt that all of the travel plans secured through the planning process are effective. This is because:

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Many local authorities use only planning conditions and not the more flexible (but complex) obligations which would allow more complex travel plans to be secured.

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There is a lack of monitoring of travel plans in many authorities.

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There is evidence that in many authority areas there are travel plans in breach of legal agreements, but these breaches are not enforced, reportedly due to a lack of monitoring, resources, and other organisational issues.

The paper discusses the reasons for these findings and also makes a number of suggestions as to how the planning system could be improved as a means of securing travel plans.     

Lessons from travel planning and road user charging for policy-making: through imperfection to implementation

In 1978 Gunn published a seminal paper which explained why implementation of policy is so difficult. The paper set out 10 conditions, which should be satisfied if perfect implementation is to be achieved. Whilst it is clear that perfect implementation is not possible in the real world, and Gunn has subsequently been criticised for his ‘top-down’ approach to decision-making, these conditions do, nonetheless act as an effective framework through which to evaluate good practice in the implementation of urban transport policy instruments. Two urban transport policy instruments, which form an increasingly important element of the Government's strategy in the UK for reducing the demand for private transport as set out in a New Deal for Transport (DETR, 1998), are travel plans and road user charging. Travel plans are a relatively recent policy instrument in the UK and seek to reduce trips to work by car by providing, through individual employers, a targeted, integrated package of incentives and disincentives to influence commuters' choice of mode of travel to and from the workplace. Road user charging, whereby motorists are charged for the road space they use in urban areas, seeks to reduce the congestion problem via the price mechanism, and has a longer history in the UK. To date the implementation of travel plans in the UK has been more widespread than that of road user charging. It is fair to say, however, that the widespread implementation of both urban transport policy instruments is a complex and sensitive area for decision-makers.The aim of this paper is firstly, to analyse travel plans and road user charging in the UK with respect to the conditions for perfect implementation put forward by Gunn and secondly, to highlight the elements of good practice, pertinent to the implementation of road user charging, in the process of the implementation of travel plans. Overall, the paper uses Gunn's theoretical framework as a basis for recommendations for better decision-making that will aid the wider implementation of both travel plans and road user charging internationally.     

Household decision-making for everyday travel: a case study of walking and cycling in Lancaster (UK)

Increased walking and cycling for short journeys in urban areas has many obvious advantages yet so far gains from the promotion of more sustainable travel of this type are mostly small. This paper reports on a large research project which uses a mixed method approach to explore attitudes to and perceptions of walking and cycling, and which examines the process of household decision-making for everyday travel and the constraints that this imposes. Using survey, interview and ethnographic data it is argued that many people hold ambiguous and sometimes contradictory views of walking and cycling as effective means of everyday travel, that what they do rarely matches precisely what they believe, and that the complexity and contingency associated with everyday travel for many households is a major barrier to the use of more sustainable travel modes. It is suggested that better understanding of these processes could help to inform both future transport policy and the promotion of walking and cycling for short trips in urban areas.     

Airport traffic and financial performance: a UK and Ireland case study

The aim of this paper is to examine the development of air services at UK and Irish airports since 1998 and to assess the impact on airport financial performance. A sample of 14 medium/small sized UK airports and three Irish airports is used. The traffic analysis shows that low cost carriers have been largely responsible for strong passenger growth and increased passenger load at a number of regional airports. Some of these carriers use established primary and regional airports whilst others seek out small secondary airports. The airports with a high proportion of low cost traffic tend to have lower unit revenues, particularly as regards airport charges, demonstrating their desire to remain price competitive to capture this type of traffic.     

Funding for local authority transport and land-use schemes in the UK

This paper focuses on the research activities, findings and planned products of one of the UK EPSRC-funded DISTILLATE (Design and Implementation Support Tools for Integrated Local Land use, Transport and the Environment) projects on the funding of transport and land-use schemes. Research activities have included a literature review, dialogue with local authority case studies and a funding workshop. The research identified and explored a range of barriers to funding, including lack of revenue funding, difficulties in obtaining funding for ‘soft’ schemes, the formation of partnerships and timing-related issues. The research also revealed that the funding system is failing to meet the needs of the current transport policy focus on managing travel demand, rather than being a supply-led process. The key project outputs are described, which include a ‘funding toolkit’ for local authorities, and guidance for funding bodies regarding the barriers faced.     

Travelling to the Ancestral Homelands: The Aspirations and Experiences of a UK Caribbean Community

This paper is based on an ethnographic study of the Caribbean community of Moss Side, Manchester (UK). Its aim is to reveal, interpret and analyse the personal meanings which members of the community attach to visiting the ancestral homeland in the Caribbean. This form of travel is defined in terms of 'ethnic reunion', which involves travelling for the purpose of visiting friends and relatives and/or searching for one's cultural roots. The study, which is based on an interpretive analysis of a range of ethnographic material, initially examines the reasons why first- and second-generation Caribbeans wish to participate in the 'homeland experience', and then illustrates ways in which they reconstruct an identity of themselves through their travel perceptions and experiences. The latter part of the paper discusses how people's travel encounters serve to illustrate how ethnic differences and boundaries between groups are constructed and/or reconstructed. It is argued that established perspectives of tourism motivation and behaviour do not fully account for the role of ethnicity as a significant variable in influencing specific forms of travel. The conclusion asserts that ethnic reunion should be conceptually viewed as a distinct form of 'travel', socioculturally dissimilar to conventional forms of 'tourism'.     

The implementation of road user charging and the lessons learnt: the case of Valletta,Malta

Whilst the theory on road pricing is well developed there are only a few schemes operating worldwide with others which have failed to be implemented. One scheme which has received relatively little attention is the Controlled Vehicular Access System (CVA) recently implemented in Valletta, Malta. This paper draws on the experience of Valletta with a move from a fixed annual charge (V-licence) for access into the city to a time-based road user charge implemented in May 2007. The aims of this paper are to identify the reasons why a fixed charge was initially introduced; to review the literature related to implementation of road user charging schemes around the world; to compare the V-licence with the CVA and identify the issues relating to the change from one scheme to another. Through the direct involvement of one of the authors in the design and implementation of the road user charge in Valletta, this paper is based on archival data, direct observation and qualitative interviews. This paper concludes on what lessons can be learnt from the case of Valletta for other cities contemplating the introduction of a road user charge.     

Local authority and academic attitudes to urban road pricing: a UK perspective

Urban road pricing as an instrument of traffic management has generated a great deal of interest in the UK in recent years. Whilst this is the case there is still no urban road pricing scheme in operation in the UK. The reason for this is primarily one of ‘acceptability.’ This paper, through the use of a national survey, examines the attitudes of key stakeholder groups with respect to urban road pricing. How serious is traffic congestion and traffic related pollution perceived to be by Local Authority Councillors, Officials and the Academic community in the UK? How is urban road pricing viewed by this sub-group of the population in terms of its effectiveness and public acceptance when compared to other policy options? and how could the saleability of urban road pricing be improved? This raises issues in terms of how the revenue raised from urban road pricing should be utilised, the use of urban road pricing as part of a package of measures, the concerns expressed by the stakeholders with respect to urban road pricing, such as the invasion of road users’ privacy, and the type of technology which should be considered. Overall, the paper aims to further the debate among policy makers.     

Transport and social exclusion: access to higher education in the UK policy context

This paper examines the student experience of transport, within the context of two hitherto distinct discourses. Firstly, the transport and social exclusion discourse, which highlights the role that low mobility plays in the experience of exclusion. Secondly, the widening participation discourse, which emphasises inequitable access to and achievement in higher education (HE) by non-traditional students as a component of social exclusion. The paper reports the results of a series of focus groups, undertaken with current HE students from a diverse range of backgrounds, many of whom may be considered to be non-traditional students. Results suggest that inadequate access to transport is a substantial barrier to access and achievement in HE, for these students. This highlights the influence of transport upon the successful implementation of social policy. Without consideration of transport and the physical accessibility of HE, the aim of increasing and widening participation in HE is unlikely to be realised.     

Looking over the horizon: Transport and reduced CO2 emissions in the UK by 2030

Transport is a major user of carbon-based fuels, and achievement of the targets set at the Kyoto Protocol and elsewhere means that the EU and national governments must reduce CO₂ emissions in all sectors, including transport. This paper reports on a recently completed study for the UK government on the options available to meet a 60% CO₂ reduction target by 2030 in the UK transport sector. The study follows a backcasting study approach, developing a business as usual baseline for transport emissions, and two alternative scenarios to 2030. Different policy measures are assessed and assembled into mutually supporting policy packages (PP). Although 2030 seems a long way ahead, action must be taken now if the targets for CO₂ reduction are to be met. The achievement of a carbon-efficient transport future, combined with holding travel levels at present levels, is likely to be very difficult. A major transformation in the way transport and urban planning is carried out is required. As transport and urban planners, we need to think very differently in tackling the new environmental and liveability imperative.     

Government Intervention in Tourism Development: Case Studies from Japan and South Australia

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the reasons behind and the nature of the intervention of non-local levels of government in local land management and economic development to assist the development of major tourism facilities. Two examples are provided of government intervention, one from Japan and one from Australia, and they show how state intervention may both stimulate tourism development and distort local development planning policy. It is concluded that, although the contents and policies of local development plans are available and may be followed to some extent, in both systems major project decisions are taken out of the hands of local communities.     

Going steerage on Ryanair: cultures of migrant air travel between Poland and the UK

One of the most high profile migration movements to the UK in recent years has undoubtedly been that of A8, and mainly Polish, newcomers following the 2004 expansion of the EU. Accompanying, and perhaps fuelling, this increase in mobility has been a substantial rise in low cost air travel provision. The UK Civil Aviation Authority and the Civil Aviation Office of the Republic of Poland statistics testify to the expansion in passenger numbers between Poland and the UK since 2004, with Ryanair being one of the main carriers. Although other modes of transport, such as coach and car travel, are still important, in some senses these Ryanair flights define this new migration. Taking as a starting point that airports and airplanes are social and cultural venues in their own right, and that migration journeys are themselves at the heart of the migration experience, this article uses interviews with Polish migrants in the UK to consider this low cost air travel for migration in more depth. Firstly it briefly charts the increase in air travel between Poland and the UK, considering the narratives of mobility cultures collected with the migrants. Secondly it investigates the collective dimension of travelling for migration on these flights and the tensions which emerge around this collectivity. Finally, it reflects on the wider costs and contexts of low cost shuttle flights as a late capitalist mode of migration transport.     

Appropriate indicators of rail freight activity and market share: A review of UK practice and recommendations for change

Growth in rail freight activity features strongly in contemporary transport policy at both the United Kingdom (UK) and European Union (EU) scale. Specifically, the British government set an 80% growth target between 2000 and 2010, with lower (but still substantial) growth estimates being identified in late-2005. This paper assesses the appropriateness of the forms of measurement adopted for rail freight activity and argues that achieving stated growth targets or estimates will not necessarily mean that policies encouraging modal shift from road to rail have succeeded. Additional or alternative means of monitoring the level of rail freight activity are discussed, since this is an issue of fundamental importance to policy implementation and evaluation.     

Selling sustainable mobility: The reporting of the Manchester Transport Innovation Fund bid in UK media

This paper examines how complex transport projects are reported in the media using the Transport Innovation Fund bid for Greater Manchester as a case study. It demonstrates how projects are simplified and distorted in the media in a systematic way. Such distortion is explained by a scheme’s perceived newsworthiness, its complexity and the contemporary nature of news media production. The paper has implications for future research in this area and the implementation of sustainable transport policy. It urges transport professionals to both better understand, and engage directly with, the media if they are to maximise the benefits of efforts to shape travel behaviour.     

战后初期美国住房问题及政府对策

第二次世界大战结束后 ,美国出现了十分严重的住房危机 ,住房问题一跃成为最主要的社会矛盾。退伍军人、中产阶级、黑人以及城市贫民都遇到了住房困难。在这种情况下 ,美国政府在房地产业的发展方面采取了“私人为主 ,政府为辅”的政策 ,从金融、立法等方面大力扶持私人建筑业 ,在一定程度上缓解了住房压力。但是 ,在具体的执行过程中 ,美国政府的住房政策仍然存在很大的漏洞 ,并且遗留了许多隐患 ,最终导致了城市危机的爆发 ,使住房问题至今仍未能得到彻底解决。     

What future for light rail in the UK after Ten Year Transport Plan targets are scrapped?

Light Rail schemes were key components of plans to improve accessibility and personal mobility in conurbations as part of the UK Government's Integrated Transport Policy and its 2000 Ten Year Transport Plan. However by 2004 light rail's future in Britain looked bleak as sharp increases in capital costs, following the demise of Railtrack and the loss of private sector confidence, led Government to withdraw its part funding of light rail schemes in Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Portsmouth.This paper examines recent changes in Government urban transport policy; why the Ten Year Transport Plan 2000 target of doubling light rail journeys and supporting the opening of 25 new light rail lines was scrapped after just 2 years; the role played by the 2004 National Audit Office Report in enabling the Government to marginalise light rail outside London; ways of reducing light rail's capital costs, securing new funding sources and lessening dependence on Government finance; and why part funding of extensions to Greater Manchester's successful Metrolink light rail system has been re-instated.