Publications

This study engages a sufficientarian perspective to examine the role current basic levels of public transport provision play in delivering sufficient accessibility for inhabitants of sparsely populated areas. A survey was conducted among people living in areas which meet the criteria set out for basic levels of public transport provision for the Västra Götaland Region, Sweden. Mixed methods were employed in the collection and analysis of the survey data. The links between socio-economic, socio-demographic, time constraints, and accessibility and transport-related characteristics on the one hand and suppressed travel combined with activity participation levels on the other were examined. Our findings indicate that the current provision levels play a limited role in delivering (sufficient) accessibility, with many reports of personal adaptive strategies and forgone trips. We found that young people were significantly more likely to report suppressed travel. We propose recommendations for the improvement of public transport-based accessibility in such contexts.

Mobility is a hallmark of functional ageing and a major health determinant in older adults. Mobility is known to decline with age, yet, except for research on driving cessation, little is known about the role of giving up other transport modes in this decline. This exploratory qualitative research focusses on public transport use, and aims to describe the process of ceasing to use public transport, its causes, and its effects on health and mobility.

This is a qualitative study, using semi-structured in-depth interviews. Participants were 23 older adults living in urbanized areas in Israel, aged 67-88 (mean 80.4 ± 6.5), in various stages of public transport use cessation. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim, with transcripts thematically analysed inductively and deductively.

Public transport use cessation is described in terms of a semi-linear process beginning with slow mobility declines that lead to difficulties using particular public transport services. Coping mechanisms are sometimes used to maintain or regain public transport use, but eventually are not enough. Public transport use cessation then leads to a further decline in mobility and loss of independence.

Public transport use cessation is an important aspect of age-related mobility decline among older adults who use public transport. It has significant detrimental mobility outcomes, and in some cases leads to complete loss of independence, potentially accelerating age-related health decline. Future research should focus on quantitative analyses and investigate interventions to maintain independence further into the ageing process.

Prevailing methods of transport planning focus on the functioning of transport systems rather than on the services people receive from those systems. In line with this perspective, and as epitomized by the four-step model, road congestion has been seen as the main transport problem, and investments to ease congestion are given priority. This approach, still very dominant in the Global North, has de facto caused the gradual emergence of transport-related social exclusion, as it has ignored the mobility and accessibility difficulties by people with limited or no access to private motorised transport. Against this background, the research explores whether and how people-centred transport planning can be relevant to Sub-Saharan Africa, where a vast majority of the population currently has no or limited access to (private) motorised transport modes. This work proposes a new transport planning approach called transport justice. Transport justice focuses on providing transport interventions to sections of a community that are most deprived of the service. The work discusses a real case study of the cities of Blantyre, Malawi, and Kigali, Rwanda. The results show that households with access to private cars in Blantyre are almost ten times better of than households without cars in terms of potential opportunities within their reach. In Kigali, households with access to a car are almost thirteen times better of than households with no car in terms of potential opportunities within reach This approach to transport planning is significant as it encourages the quantification of the transport needs of people groups and the prioritisation of areas with the greatest needs in the implementation of transport interventions.

This paper presents an approach to use GPS-based travel behavior surveys to determine who is being served well and who is being served poorly by the transport system. We draw on the extensive literature on travel behavior, which has shown that people’s travel behavior is at least in part shaped by the travel barriers they experience. Starting from this basic insight, we define 17 parameters that may provide insight into a person’s relative ease of movement. These ease of movement parameters cover dimensions related to trip frequency and diversity (e.g., overall and in evening hours), transport mode use (e.g., as driver or passenger), travel speed (e.g., for public transport legs), distance (e.g., trip detour ratio), and effort (e.g., ratio between trip legs and out-of-home activities). No single parameter is sufficient to determine whether someone is served well or poorly by the transport system, as behaviors may be the result of choice as well as constraint. However, we argue that jointly the parameters are likely to differentiate well-served from poorly-served people. We apply our approach to data from six GPS-based travel behavior surveys conducted in Israel’s four main metropolitan areas (N = 62,981). We calculate z-scores for all ease of movement parameters, with negative values suggesting mobility problems and positive values relative ease of movement compared to the entire sample. We conduct four known-group analyses, comparing mean z-scores by level of access to a private motorized vehicle, age, gender, and disability. Results are systematically in line with expectations: population segments identified in the literature as experiencing (more severe levels of) transport disadvantage show systematically lower composite mobility scores. These outcomes are particularly striking, considering the short observation period of only one day per respondent. Taken together, these findings provide a first indication that revealed travel behavior patterns can be used to identify population segments poorly served by the transport system and thus to determine both success and failure of the existing transport system. While more research is needed, the approach also holds promise to determine the impacts of transport projects on people’s ease of movement.

Amidst rapid urbanization and increasing motorization, walking remains a widely used mode of transport in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The frequency with which people walk, the distance for which they may be willing to walk, and the convenience and safety with which they can walk, depend significantly on road design. Moreover, the impact of roads on walking behavior will differ between population segments. Road designs in SSA typically prioritize motorized transport, neglecting pedestrians' safety and convenience, as well as aesthetic appeal of roads, and often ignoring the importance of roads and streets as a place for economic and social activities. This study addresses the under-researched relationship between road design and walking in a Sub-Saharan African city. We analyze residents' perceptions and experiences on two distinct roads in Bamenda, the third-largest city in Cameroon. Using a checklist, we assessed the selected roads for pedestrian-friendly and hostile elements. Thirty participants residing near the roads were interviewed to understand their walking experiences and perceptions of street walkability. Findings reveal poor walking conditions on both roads, which lack essential pedestrian infrastructure. Where present, pedestrian infrastructure is often obstructed by businesses and parked vehicles. Respondents reported walking to be (severely) affected by conflicts with motorized traffic and especially motorcycles, and poor road conditions resulting in dust and mud in dry and rainy seasons respectively. Surprisingly, poor road conditions may also enhance walking, as they reduce vehicle speeds and thus safety risks.

Background and aim Public transport use has been linked to several health benefits in the general population and is crucial for older adults’ mobility, due to an age-related decline in physical and cognitive capacity and mobility, particularly the ability to use other modes of transport. The objective of this systematic review is to determine what is known about the physical and mental health outcomes of public transport use of older adults and to identify remaining gaps in the literature. Methods Five electronic databases were searched in April 2023, and then updated in January 2024: Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, Ageline and Transport Research International Documentation (TRID). Included were studies that were in English, contained a measure of public transport use as exposure, and any health outcome, including mental or physical health, physical or cognitive function, morbidity, or mortality, among people aged ≥60 years. Results Of a total of 2247 unique records that were screened, the full text of 20 was assessed for eligibility and 11 were identified as eligible. Citation search identified two additional studies, amounting to a total of 13 included studies. Significant health outcomes described in assessed studies were decreased obesity and depressive symptoms, and to a lesser extent increased gait speed and cognitive function. Conclusions Initial evidence suggests a positive impact of public transport use on obesity, depressive symptoms, gait and cognitive function, although available research was limited in context and methodology. Further research should focus on determining causality between public transport use and health, and be conducted in more diverse contexts. Transport and urban planners, as well as policymakers, should consider the implications of public transport on the health and independence of older adults.

This paper proposes a relational egalitarian framework for conceptualizing justice in transport planning and policymaking. Building on Elizabeth Anderson's work, we argue that transport justice should be understood in terms of dismantling oppressive social hierarchies rather than merely redistributing resources. The paper outlines three key dimensions of relational (in)equality in transportation: hierarchies of power, standing, and esteem. It examines how these hierarchies manifest in governance processes, in the delivery of transport infrastructure and services, and in the social norms that affect the mobility of people, systematically disadvantaging marginalized groups. By focusing on the relational aspects of transport inequalities, this approach offers both a broader and more nuanced understanding of injustice in transport and provides planners with a comprehensive analytical tool to identify and address previously overlooked forms of discrimination in mobility systems. The aim of the paper is then to propose a framework able to reorient transport planning as a tool for fostering a society of equals.

In this paper, we explore how psychology professionals understand and treat the mobility issues of people diagnosed with anxiety disorder, based on 13 in-depth interviews. All interviewees regularly treat clients facing challenges using various modes of transportation due to anxiety disorders. Their clients exhibit a range of mobility issues, with some struggling with driving or being a passenger in a car, while others encounter difficulties when using public transport, cycling, or being a pedestrian. The mobility problems their clients experience affect their daily lives. Next to applying individual Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) adopted by most interviewees, they also suggest that adjustments in the mobility system could assist individuals with anxiety disorders to participate more fully in society. Hence, we advocate for more research on the mobility system that integrates psychological perspectives on mobility-related problems caused by anxiety disorder to support a more inclusive mobility planning, design, and organization of the system. Inclusive planning implies (1) designing mainstream infrastructures and services enabling people with anxiety disorders to move around independently while reducing anxiety-triggering situations without them becoming disclosed; (2) enhancing walkability and cyclability through both transport and land use planning, since having destinations within a short distance from home seems to be especially beneficial for people with anxiety disorders.

A high level of integration of public transport services in terms of scheduling, ticketing, and cross-operator data provision and others is crucial to provide a high level of service to potential users. Transport integration issues are a growing need as transport providers consider low cost ways of increasing ridership following the travel pattern disruptions exacerbated by the recent pandemic. Particularly in Europe, there has been increasing privatization of services, which are tendered to private operators that bid in a competitive process, though public authorities often retain the power to define such services (Pettersson and Hrelja, 2020).  This has created operator fragmentation (Pettersson & Hrelja, 2020), and requires further research on cross-operator service integration.  Previous scholarship has found that larger tenders and more integrated tenders should, over time, facilitate further cooperation (Veeneman & van de Velde, 2014), but more research is needed on the process for developing such tenders, how its ability to overcome transport fragmentation is influenced by the centralization of the process and the centralization of government decision making (Veeneman and Mulley, 2018).  Israel presents a case with a highly centralized transport decision making process that will add to existing literature on tendering and transport fragmentation. The challenge of delivering an integrated system has increased over the past decades, due to the (gradual) privatization of public transport services over multiple private public transport providers in many countries. Israel is one of the countries that have followed this path since the early 2000s, with the public tendering process resulting in the fragmentation of services from merely 2 into 17 bus operators. In this paper, we use document analysis as well as interviews with key members of the national government, private consultants, private operators and municipalities, to understand how the Israeli tendering process fragmented services into 17 operators, but also developed ways to integrate them. The study uses this information to understand the role of formal institutions in coordinating schedules, integration of fares and fare cards, shared use of terminals, and cross-operator data sharing across the country. We identify a number of ways integration was enhanced in each category, with the national government making use of its strong leverage over private operators. We also highlight the limitations of this approach due to the separate management of bus and rail services within the national government. The study closes with findings that Israel has achieved coordination despite a large amount of private ownership and fragmentation across operators.  Flexibility over time has helped to refine this coordination with each new tender.  However the results have been confined to the bus system, with poor coordination across modes (bus/rail), and results that are unsatisfactory to local municipalities, which are often not included in the decision making process.  In this case, the use of a higher level of government to effect coordination has been effective, though it has also impeded their ability to adapt to local needs.

Every workplace has an explicit or implicit transportation policy with respect to its employee mobility. Whether it is officially managed or not, employer's policies regarding parking provision, travel allowances and other transport related financial or non-financial benefits affect employee transport-related decisions, such as vehicle ownership and mode choice. These employee decisions, in turn, have substantial impacts on the environment and society, raising the question whether workplaces take up employee mobility – business travel and commuting – as part of their corporate social responsibility commitments. To answer this question, we selected a sample of 30 leading companies worldwide and examined to what extent they are committed to promote sustainable employee transportation, using companies’ sustainability reports for the year 2022. Our findings indicate: (1) inconsistency in reporting on environmental or social domains, and on reporting on business travel or commuting; (2) the narrow scope of social and environmental impacts of employee mobility being addressed, mostly limited to GHG emission and traffic accidents; (3) the limited level of commitment, with most companies failing to set targets or specify actions ; and (4) the importance of reporting frameworks in shaping sustainable practices of companies. Taken together, our findings indicate that the current reporting process appears to have only a modest impact on inducing companies to adopt more sustainable employee mobility policies. Given the dominance of reporting frameworks, it is suggested to expand these to include employee transportation. Such adjustments may help close the gap between extensive academic knowledge on sustainable employee transportation and current company mobility management policies.