Transport and society

1. Transport and society Lecture 6 Urban transport and the environment

2. Limited mobility before Industrial Revolution

3. Mobility before Industrial Revolution • Few and short trips (1.1 per day, distance < 10 km per day) • Land transport: walking, draught animals (horses) • Water transport: sailing, rowing • Transport minimal impact on the environment

4. The Industrial Revolution • Invention of Watt’s steam engine • Demand for improvements to allow transport of raw materials, fuel, manufactured products • Canal network in Great Britain (end of 1700s) • Soon railways became the most important means of land transport (around 1850) • Steamboats • Synergetic expansion of production, transport and urbanisation

5. Progress in motorisation • End of 1800s: cars based on combustion engine using petrol • Also pneumatic tyres • The assembly line: T-Ford from 1908 to 1927 • Spread of cars affected lifestyles, urban structures; led to road constructions in and between cities and across countries

6. Post WWII development • US • By 1950s one car per household • Increase in mobility spurred urban development with low densities • Decline in public transport; complete dependence on cars • Western Europe • Similar but later spread of motorisation • However, cars coexisted with public transport • Old compact cities, publicly funded public transport

7. 1960s –1970s • Even more rapid motorisation • Cities transformed to facilitate car use • Flexible choice of residence and work • Public transport suffered a fall in profitability and competitiveness • People appreciated the convenience of car transport • However, serious new social problems • Congestion • Dependence on petrol even in developing countries • Air pollution (noticed early in Southern California) • 1963 – first US federal Clean Air Act

8. 1960s –1970s continued • Europe • Buchanan Report: Roads in large cites causes more congestion than it remedies due to induced demand • The Leber Plan: Shutting cars out of city centres; improvements of public transport • Japan • Environmental problems from traffic largely neglected, partly because the problems were severe later • Later on health problems related to lead in petrol, photochemical smog, and noise were recognised • Newly developed and developing countries • Environmental problems recognised in the 1980s and 1990s

9. Impacts of transport on the environment • Climate change • Air quality • Noise • Water quality • Soil quality • Biodiversity • Land take • Accidents and movement of hazardous goods

10. To eliminate environmental problems • Creation of environmental protection agencies in the 1970s in many countries • The US Clean Air Act of 1970 specifically on transport • Required a 90 % reduction of air pollution by 1975 (requirements were later made milder) • In Japan • Use of unleaded petrol • In 1978 an Automobile Exhaust Gases Regulation Act (90 % reduction of NOx) • In West Germany • In 1980s cars were taxed depending on catalytic converter or not

11. Urban transport management policy • In 1960-70 in the US construction of ring roads and underground connections • The oil crisis lead to TSM (Transport System Management) – low cost means of raising capacity • Improved intersections • Traffic light control • Lanes for buses and HOVs (high occupancy vehicles) • Park and ride facilities

12. Urban transport management policy cont. • Later shifted to TDM (Transport Demand Management) • Avoid typical demand increase as often follows on new road construction • Restrict traffic for environmental reasons • Demand-side rather the supply-side measures • Includes: flextime, car sharing, park and ride, kiss and ride, priority lanes for buses and HOVs, promoting bicycle use, traffic calming, car free city centres, parking management, congestion pricing • Specifically for Europe • Compact cities • Improving pedestrian spaces and public transport facilities (LRT, Light Rail Transit lines, subways and continuation with streetcars)

13. Urban transport management - examples • San Francisco – restricting car access to city centre “Transit First Policy” • Portland – harmonising urban development with public transport • The Netherlands – “ABC Policy” designate location for new offices • Road pricing • Singapore, Norway (Bergen, Oslo, Trondheim), London, Stockholm • ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) in Japan, eg car navigation system, electronic toll collection

14. Environmental degradation in developing countries • Environmental situation equally serious, or worse • Most countries not complying with WHO standards for air pollutants • Rapid industrial development, increase in car ownership, urbanisation (17 % of world population living in cities larger than 1 million)  Traffic congestion (Bangkok in 1994: 7-8 km/h), accidents, pollution

15. Variation in car ownership by country income

16. Transport-related energy consumption

17. Average air pollution • SPM = suspended particulate matter • Measures for both fixed and moving sources of pollutant • generation needed – a large cost to bear

18. Awareness of global environmental problems • The Stockholm Conference in 1972 • Improvement of the global environment discussed (e.g. acidic deposition) • Establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) • Efforts to deal with the problem of global warming (in the 1980s) • Possible rise of the sea level • ”Sustainable development” introduced by the Brundtland Commission in 1987 • ”development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”

19. Current transport systems are not sustainable • Use petrol, which is finite • Generate petroleum-based emissions • Generate CO2 and other greenhouse gases • Produce excessive numbers of accidents • Result in congestion

20. Awareness of global environmental problems • Establishment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988 • Regular scientifically based reports on the global warming issue • More concerned for each report • The Rio Declaration Agenda 21 in 1992 • Called for a reduction of the emissions to the 1990 level by 2000 in the developed countries • Did not materialise • The Kyoto Protocol in 1997 (in force 2005) • At least 5 % reduction of greenhouse gases by 2008-12 compared with 1990 levels in developed countries • No numerical targets for developing countries • Trade in Emission Permits (to reduce emissions where cheapest) • US and Australia have not ratified it

21. World CO2-emissions

22. CO2-emission shares by countries

23. Contribution of transport to global environmental problems • The transport sector share of energy consumption in 1995 was 27 % and will in 2020 possibly be 33 % (a little less for CO2) • The transport sector is increasing its share of fossil fuel consumption • Global increase in traffic volumes makes it difficult to reduce fuel consumption • Total energy consumption expected to increase by 2 % per year (however, elasticity less than 1) • CO2-emissions will increase in a similar way if nothing is done • Of CO2-emissions from transport, land transport accounts for 74 %, aviation, shipping and railways for 12, 10, and 4 %, respectively

24. Energy efficiency of various motorised modes • Maritime transport the most energy efficient mode of transport (3-5 % of all transport energy consumed) • Rail is four times more efficient for passenger movement and twice as efficient for freight as road transport • Air is least energy efficient (5 % of all transport energy consumed) • Passenger transport accounts for 60-70 % of transport energy consumption

25. Dependence of non-renewable energy • The transport sector relies on petroleum-based fuels to 95 % • Still oil reserves for several decades but we may be close to peak production • Higher oil prices could be expected • Search for alternative fuels (1 hectare could produce at most 1000 litres of biogas) • To maintain mobility technological innovations and changes in infrastructure and lifestyles are necessary • Think globally – act locally!

26. Objectives and strategies for transport and land use policy

27. Key messages • Industrial Revolution  motorised transport  expanded mobility of people and goods  a revolutionary change in people’s lifestyles • After 1950 motorisation spread in one after another region • Convenience, prosperity and urbanisation but also air pollution and noise • Growth of car ownership and usage  oil consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, climate change • Motorisation in developing countries much faster • Sustain mobility: minimising negative effects, improvements in especially the urban transport sector