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This work is concerned with the development of techniques for the evaluation of large-scale highway schemes with particular reference to the assessment of their costs and benefits in the context of the current transport planning (T.P.P.) process. It has been carried out in close cooperation with West Midlands County Council, although its application and results are applicable elsewhere. The background to highway evaluation and its development in recent years has been described and the emergence of a number of deficiencies in current planning practise noted. One deficiency in particular stood out, that stemming from inadequate methods of scheme generation and the research has concentrated upon improving this stage of appraisal, to ensure that subsequent stages of design, assessment and implementation are based upon a consistent and responsive foundation. Deficiencies of scheme evaluation were found to stem from inadequate development of appraisal methodologies suffering from difficulties of valuation, measurement and aggregation of the disparate variables that characterise highway evaluation. A failure to respond to local policy priorities was also noted. A 'problem' rather than 'goals' based approach to scheme generation was taken, as it represented the current and foreseeable resource allocation context more realistically. A review of techniques with potential for highway problem based scheme generation, which would work within a series of practical and theoretical constraints were assessed and that of multivariate analysis, and classical factor analysis in particular, was selected, because it offerred considerable application to the difficulties of valuation, measurement and aggregation that existed. Computer programs were written to adapt classical factor analysis to the requirements of T.P.P. highway evaluation, using it to derive a limited number of factors which described the extensive quantity of highway problem data. From this, a series of composite problem scores for 1979 were derived for a case study area of south Birmingham, based upon the factorial solutions, and used to assess highway sites in terms of local policy issues. The methodology was assessed in the light of its ability to describe highway problems in both aggregate and disaggregate terms, to guide scheme design, coordinate with current scheme evaluation methods, and in general to improve upon current appraisal. Analysis of the results was both in subjective, 'common-sense' terms and using statistical methods to assess the changes in problem definition, distribution and priorities that emerged. Overall, the technique was found to improve upon current scheme generation methods in all respects and in particular in overcoming the problems of valuation, measurement and aggregation without recourse to unsubstantiated and questionable assumptions. A number of deficiencies which remained have been outlined and a series of research priorities described which need to be reviewed in the light of current and future evaluation needs.

No description available.

No description available.

Paratransit operations in cities in developing countries play an important role in public transport provision. The operations are run within the realm of the infonnal sector and are highly flexible. There are numerous operators running one or two vehicles on a cash basis. This and other issues contribute to the problems with the services that are provided. Poor reliability and stability in supply are the main problems. Despite these serious problems, there has been little research on possible solutions to resolve them. The present study is aimed at improving understanding of the operation of such systems. It assesses the effects on users and operators of different routing, stopping and scheduling regimes. A new model of paratransit operations is developed. The problem of paratransit operations is conceptualised in terms of interactions between demand and supply. The interactions take place in time and geographical space and are shaped by the actions taken by individual users and individual vehicle operators. The model is designed to overcome some of the restrictions on the definitions of time - and in particular space - that are found in existing methodologies. A modelling approach designed to represent the two dimensions as realistically as possible was adopted. Two techniques are central to the construction of the model. Simulation techniques are used to model the temporal processes and a Geographical Information System (GIS) for the spatial processes. The two are complementary to overcome the inherent weaknesses in either approach. Modules are developed to represent demand and supply at a microscopic level. The Model of Paratransit Services (MOPS) involves interfacing a GIS and external modules for dynamic processes. The model was validated against field data collected in Harare, Zimbabwe. Experiments were run for a case study area and the results that were obtained on routing, stopping and scheduling regimes are reported in developing countries.

Transport systems employing small sized vehicles and operated under an informal institutional structure are the essence of unconventional wisdom of urban transport planning in the Third World. The minibus is one of the many types of unconventional passenger carriers which primarily originate from indigenous technology. In the Far East, minibuses play a crucial role in moving commuters in large urban areas. Using minibuses in urban passenger transport services is interesting phenomena in urban transport planning in both developed and developing countries. Being small the minibus can ply along narrow streets often seen in crowded residential quarters and thus provide users with a high level of accessibility to trip ends. Furthermore, providers of minibus transport services are profitable, associated with small scale business and informal organizational structure and, more interestingly, often under private ownership. The minibus system in Beijing is one of the most recent public transport systems established in the Far East. It is distinctive in that the providers can be financially viable under state ownership and in large fleets. This study examines the system's service style, ownership pattern and organizational structure which are thought to have influenced the undertakings' financial performance. The findings suggest that neither ownership nor institutional structure contributes directly to profitability. The main factors for financial viability rest upon the self-reliance and entrepreneurship within the industry, which stimulates labour efficiency of the crews. Besides, the 'near-monopolistic' market and the limited total supply serving a huge population, also create opportunities for providers to charge high fares. On the basis of the findings, the study recommends that, in order to encourage the passenger transport business, a competitive market mechanism should be developed within the industry, with the participation of all sectors. The major outcome of this study is the building of a model of transport planning for developing cities. The essence of the model is that in low-income countries, cheap labour is an important resource which should be utilized fully in substitution for expensive imported technology, and that the use of modern technology should follow the affordability of the citizens and the condition of economic development. In conclusion, the study confirms that the unconventional transport wisdom is an appropriate approach that should be given proper weight, especially in the developing world.

Electric vehicles can play an important role in a future sustainable road transport system and many Swedish politicians would like to see them implemented faster. This is likely desirable to reach the target of a fossil independent vehicle fleet in Sweden by 2030 and a greenhouse gas neutral Swedish society no later than 2050. However, to reach both these targets, and certainly to support the full scope of sustainability, it is important to consider the whole life-cycle of the vehicles and also the interaction between the transport sector and other sectors. So far, there are no plans for transitions towards a sustainable transport system applying a sufficiently wide systems perspective, in Sweden or elsewhere. This implies a great risk for sub-optimizations. The overall aim of this work is to elaborate methodological support for development of sustainable personal road transport systems that is informed by a strategic sustainable development perspective. The Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) is used as a foundation for the work to ensure a sufficiently wide systems perspective and coordinated collaboration across disciplines and sectors, both in the research and application. Maxwell’s Qualitative Research Design and the Design Research Methodology are used as overall guides for the research approach. Specific research methods and techniques include literature studies, action research seminars, interviews, and measurements of energy use, costs, and noise. Moreover, a case study on the conditions for a breakthrough for vehicles in southeast Sweden has been used as a test and development platform. Specific results include a preliminary vision for electrical vehicles in southeast Sweden, framed by the principled sustainability definition of the FSSD, an assessment of the current reality in relation to that vision, and proposed solutions to bridge the gap, organized into a preliminary roadmap. The studies show that electric vehicles have several sustainability advantages even when their whole life-cycle is considered, provided that they are charged with electricity from new renewable sources. Electrical vehicles also imply a low total cost of ownership and could promote new local ‘green jobs’ under certain conditions. Particularly promising results are seen for electric buses in public transport. As a general result, partly based on the experiences from the specific case, a generic community planning process model is proposed and its usefulness for sustainable transport system development is discussed. The strategic sustainable development perspective of this thesis broadens the analysis beyond the more common focus on climate change issues and reduces the risk of sub-optimizations in community and transport system development. The generic support for multi-stakeholder collaboration could potentially also promote a more participatory democratic approach to community development, grounded in a scientific foundation. Future research will explore specific decision support systems for sustainable transport development based on the generic planning process model. / GreenCharge

It is expected that freight transport in the European Union will grow significantly and road transport will account for a major part of this growth. By 2020 almost 30% of CO2 emissions in the European Union will be caused by transportation. It is obvious that our present patterns of transport growth are unsustainable. One way toward more sustainable transport is to explicitly take greenhouse gas emissions into account in logistics decisions and to get freight traffic to switch from roads to alternative transport modes. This contribution discusses drivers and opportunities for intermodal transport planning. Related literature is surveyed and fields for future research are identified.