No description available.

A socially sustainable transport system has to make sure that opportunities are accessible to all. The social dimension is important as transport-related barriers can contribute to social injustice. A well-functioning transport system should promote greater equity by linking people and places together. The discussion in this thesis revolves around the main concept of individual mobility. It refers to the ease with which an individual can move from one place to another to access opportunities. The main research objective of the thesis is to investigate the factors affecting individual mobility of three selected transport-disadvantaged groups, namely children, working mothers and the elderly. The thesis presents three in-depth case studies within a framework of time geography. Each study highlights the individual mobility problems confronted by the selected transport-disadvantaged group. The first case study is a detailed investigation of children’s mobility to access educational opportunities. The next chapter examines gendered mobility of working mothers and their counterparts. Finally, a walkability study is carried out to evaluate how the walking environment affects outdoor mobility of the aging population. This research employs a suite of methods in evaluating individual mobility. Children’s access to educational opportunities is examined through the computation of the size of potential path area and the number of weighted opportunities reachable within given space-time constraints. To move on, multilevel analysis is carried out to compare the daily activity spaces of married couples. Finally, a walkability assessment is conducted to evaluate factors affecting older people’s access to health-care facilities. These approaches build up to a comprehensive and holistic view to explore the issue of socially sustainable transport. By providing a more focused picture on the transport problems faced by groups which run the risks of being excluded in the mainstream transport development, this study has the potential to provide a new and comprehensive outlook in the theme of social sustainability in transport research. This thesis brings the social, spatial and temporal dimensions together in planning for a socially sustainable transport system. The results of each case study provide advice and develop initiatives to work towards a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable society. The findings from the chapter on children show that place disadvantage is an important issue to be addressed. For working mothers, the household responsibility hypothesis is evident, despite the compact city environment. The final chapter shows that active transport can benefit elderly citizens in a multitude of ways. More walkability assessments surrounding health-care and other opportunities should be looked into and audited. From the findings, the research concludes that the needs of these groups are not thoroughly addressed in Hong Kong, and related geographical research is also limited in the field. The urge to address the preferences and needs of these groups are of strategic importance. Recommendations for future research include an improved understanding of the needs among an expanded range of stakeholders and depending on the locations in where they live. / published_or_final_version / Geography / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Philosophy

No description available.

The objective of this study is to set a methodology for transportation systems evaluation using an approach different than the traditional. The first part consist on a description of the transportation problem, the different concerns over the years and how transportation planning faced it. The second part explains the systems point of view, that considers problems as part of a bigger ones and relate them through causal relationships that make possible to incorporate social and environmental impacts to the model. Then a description of the traditional approach for transportation systems evaluation is given as a background for the dynamic economic evaluation that allows the planner to see the evolution of the parameters over time. The methodology is applied to a scenario where a new transportation facility is going to be built and the best of the alternatives should be selected. This study also emphasizes that the methodology is a tool for the decision-maker but it will never replace his judgment. / M.S.

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Design / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

This dissertation explored the links between residential segregation, transportation policy, and education equity in the metropolitan area of La Paz-El Alto, Bolivia. Using quantitative and qualitative research methods, the study assessed whether mass transit projects counter the educational effects of residential segregation. The specific goals of the study were to: (a) measure the level of segregation that students experience in neighborhoods and schools; (b) assess disparities in school accessibility among students of different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds; and (c) to measure the effects of mass transit availability on school segregation. The results showed that students in the metropolitan area of La Paz-El Alto are highly segregated by ethnic and socioeconomic background. Moreover, neighborhoods with a higher proportion of either Indigenous or low-income students have lower levels of school accessibility. School accessibility is hindered by the limited supply of schooling and by an inefficient, unsafe, and limited public transportation system. The introduction of high-quality mass transit had a small yet statistically significant effect on school segregation. Students in the lowest third of the wealth distribution are more likely than their wealthier counterparts to change schools when mass transit becomes available. Mass transit projects have thus been a welcome addition to families’ transportation options, which highlights the significance of pairing education and transportation policies to promote greater equality of educational opportunity.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Env.Dev.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002.

This study asserts that the everyday life, daily activities and mobility interaction remains peripheral within the Sociology of Childhood and Mobilities in particular and sociology in general. This is not to say that there are no sociological studies on child mobility. Instead, existing studies usually focus on the impact of child mobility on adult mobility, their daily lives and schedules with children’s voices, experiences and needs remaining obscure. This generates a passive, univocal, skewed and constrained portrayal and (re)presentation of the child. These unreflected habituations have particular implications for children’s inclusion, participation, and well-being in society; and are in conflict with contemporary and global shifts in childhood and mobility studies. This dissertation, then examines the conceptualisation and problematisation of child mobility in current studies, statistics, policies and interventions, with a particular focus on South Africa. This encompasses questions about the epistemological worldview and evidence-base supporting the various policies and practices. In terms of the reification and privileging of some paradigms, Max Weber’s analysis of ‘social action’, ‘social closure’ ‘domination’ and ‘monopolization’ is appropriated and redirected. Closure (exclusion) rests on the process of subordination, whereby dominant groups close opportunities to groups it categorises as inferior, or ineligible. Children’s subordinate roles in hierarchical structures in societies are derived based on, amongst other factors, culture, age, gender and generation. These codes are used to exclude or include individuals or groups. The utility of closure theory is in the theorising of adult roles; rationalisation of adult dominance; and the limiting of children’s agency and autonomy in institutions in societies. This includes adult roles in research and policy-making communities. This suggests that we need to reflect on, re-evaluate and reframe our approach to listening, talking, thinking and writing on, and about, children. The study asserts the relevancy of the pragmatic and critical constructivist lens in mediating the paradigmatic and epistemic shifts necessary for sociological (re)engagement and reframing of the discourses and debates on child mobility. The approaches are compatible with current developments in field (s) and are important to producing sociologically relevant knowledge on and about children. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.