Making local transport sustainable Stephen Joseph, Chief Executive - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Making transport sustainable

Making local transport sustainable

Stephen Joseph, Chief Executive Campaign for Better Transport

Making transport sustainable

Campaign for Better Transport

• Charitable trust promoting sustainable transport
• Support from wide range of interests
• Co-ordinates environmental and other NGOs

concerned with transport

• Commissions and publishes research
• Conducts public campaigns
• Promotes pilot projects and good practice

Making transport sustainable

Sustainable development

Brundtland definition: Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs Three pillars:

• Social
• Environmental
• Economic

Making transport sustainable

In theory, sustainability is now central to transport policy…

• Climate Change Act 2008
• Carbon reduction has equal billing with economic growth

as a Department for Transport goal

• Sustainable development is the purpose of the planning

system

• Low emission vehicle strategy
• Funding for measures to reduce carbon, including electric

vehicles and green bus fund

• EU mandatory standards for cars and vans
• Sustainable aviation group
• Social and distributional assessment now part of

transport appraisal

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But challenges remain

• Carbon reduction and sustainability generally is about

technology, not related to travel behaviour or transport infrastructure decisions

• Key transport decisions – for example on fares, pricing,

infrastructure and funding – don’t take account of carbon reduction or other sustainability issues

• Transport not joined up - to land use planning and other

government decisions And at present in parts of Government short term economic growth trumps everything else

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There are real constraints: carbon dependency can’t continue

We will be living in a carbon constrained world not just because of policies to tackle climate change but because of: Oil insecurity and policies to tackle this by reducing reliance on imported oil from politically unstable areas Rising long term real oil prices with rising demand from emerging economies and peaking in oil supply

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Peak oil

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..transport is at risk..

Oil based transport will become: Dearer generally Subject to supply shocks from weather or politics Fluctuating prices So the case for reducing fuel and carbon emissions is not just an environmental case but one for security and the economy too.

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And there are other impacts

• Noise
• Air quality: still poor
• Landscape and biodiversity
• Road casualties
• Health impacts from less physical activity
• Community severance
• Social exclusion

Many of these result from car dependence – where car use is a necessity not a choice

Making transport sustainable

Car dependence is a problem for…

• Those with cars (who have

to drive more)

• Those without cars, who are

excluded from society And it leaves us all vulnerable to peak oil Car dependency scorecard shows that towns and cities vary enormously

Making transport sustainable

..so past transport trends can’t continue

Trip lengthening (and all that goes with it) Car-based development Mode switch to car/lorry/air Transport planning based on past trends continuing does not respect these limits And the evidence is that travel patterns are changing

R2N Conf 2012

Risks from incorrect traffic forecasts

Making transport sustainable

Will technology overcome all problems?

Technology will help but isn’t the whole answer:

• Biofuels can create more problems than they solve
• Being really optimistic you might get 10% of new cars

sold to be electric by 2020, and recession makes this harder to deliver

• EVs raise issues of sourcing of electricity demand – low

carbon electricity? How much extra demand? Peaks and troughs? Realistically, you might get 25% extra fuel economy by 2020

Making transport sustainable

What does this mean in practice?

Measures to help people and businesses change travel behaviour, including working with the main travel generators Better public transport, promotion of walking and cycling Parking policies Link transport and planning: locate development next to public transport, accessibility planning Smart transport infrastructure

Making transport sustainable

Business has to play its part

CO2 emissions from passenger surface transport modes Work 28% Education 3% Personal business 20% Recreation 24% Holiday 7% Other 8% Employer's business 10%

'Surface transport modes' include household cars, buses, coaches, surface rail, underground, light rail, taxis

Making transport sustainable

Car use can be reduced: Sustainable Travel Towns 2004-8 (trips)

Darlington

Car use (trips) Public transport (trips) Cycling Walking

• 11%
• 13%

+89-113 % +11-13%

Worcester

Car use Public transport Cycling Walking

• 11%

+ 27% + 11-23% +9-14%

Peterborough

Car use Public transport Cycling Walking

• 12%

+ 40% +10-17% +9-14%

Making transport sustainable

Walking and cycling

60% of car journeys are under 5 miles, so encouraging walking and cycling could make a difference. This means

• Safe routes
• Signing
• Cycle parking
• Street design (e.g. advanced stop

lines at lights)

• Speed management where

people live

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Door to door public transport

• Information: needs to be high quality,

accurate, real time and easily available

• Network-wide ticketing/ smartcards
• Guaranteed connections
• Marketing: “metro” maps, branding etc
• Personal security: CCTV, policing priority
• Good interchanges and access to

stops/stations

• End to end bus priority

Above all treat public transport as a priority network that decision-makers and car users might want to use (and by the way, competition law can’t stop this)

Making transport sustainable

Network St Albans

• An area wide voluntary partnership, with 5 bus
• perators, 2 train operators, district and county council
• Network map
• More frequent services
• New buses
• Multi-operator (BUSnet) ticket
• Real time information
• Better bus stops

Early results: increased revenue of 20% year on year

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Working groups

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BUSnet ticket

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Opportunities – or threats

• More powers for local authorities and

LEPs on rail and spending – but funding cuts for buses etc may work against this

• New funding streams – workplace parking

levy, supplementary business rates, developer funding And we are promoting tax benefits for commuting by public transport

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Public transport oriented development

Link public transport and new development Joint rail/development projects Use developments to fund rail investment Develop rail stations as gateways/hubs Create town-wide transport partnerships “New stations” competition announced in July

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Conclusion

• Transport needs to promote “smart growth”, not “no growth” or

“dumb growth”

• Sustainability is not just about carbon reduction: other issues

are important too

• Sustainable transport will need a focus on behaviour change

as well as technology – and travel behaviour can change

• There are examples of business and council initiatives that can
• ffer good alternatives
• Challenge is to make transport decisions and funding support

rather than undermine sustainable travel

Making transport sustainable

Different routes to prosperity

Vienna: car use has fallen from 40% - 36%, 30% of journeys are now on foot or bike, 34% public transport Los Angeles: 90% car, 10% rest

Making transport sustainable

For more information

Campaign for Better Transport www.bettertransport.org.uk stephen.joseph@bettertransport.org.uk 020 7566 6480