“Where there is a will, there is an effect”

“Where there is a will, there is an effect” The effectiveness of mobility management in the Netherlands Friso Metz, KPVV Knowledge Platform Traffic and Transport Marco Martens, ECORYS Henk Pauwels, AVV Transport Research Centre ECOMM 2005 Parma

Aim and perspective • The context of mobility management in the Netherlands • The study “effectiveness of mobility management” (KPVV/ECORYS) • Lessons for broader implementation

MM in “decentralised policy context”: Vision on (Urban) Transport • Door-to-door approach: improve reliability • Area-wise approach: optimise network utilization and location/site access • Involve all relevant partners (govt, operators, private, NGO’s); foster co-operation (public-public, public-private) • Do not focus on responsibilities/jurisdictions, but on the problem and how to tackle it • Realistic, step-by-step, no “grand designs” • Shift problem ownership towards “mobility generators” • More “mandatory”effort required from responsible private actors (e.g. employers) • Extra driver: Clean Air Directive

MM in current NL national policy: New “élan” In national strategic Mobility Policy Document 2005-2020: • MM required to be essential component of transport plans of provinces, regions and municipalities • MM options to be taken into account when considering motorway capacity expansion • MM plan required for building and environmental permit for business operations - (to be enforced by municipal authorities) • MM-plan required when organising big events- (to be enforced by municipal authorities)

Aim for KPVV/Ecorys study: • Make the results of mobility management accessible for further policies: • “find hard facts” about effectiveness; • special emphasis on area/site access oriented projects • Results of “what exactly”? Elements for sharpening the definition of MM: • a vision? an approach? a “bunch” of measures? a managerial concept? • demand oriented: mobility policies bottom-up • process oriented: co-operation, covenants

Examples of found results (1) • Amsterdam Southeast area development (business parks, shopping malls, Arena stadium): incorporating MM-package in plans helped to meet environmental requirements – and helps keeping the area accessible [recently: successful employee travel package during major motorway overhaul] • Rotterdam Marathon and Cultural Capital: MM resulted in doubling of PT patronage and an accessible city centre • Companies in business park Oosteind (Papendrecht) agreed to implement a package to achieve 30% less traffic during necessary major reconstruction (linked to dike renovation)

Examples of found results (2) • Gelre Hospital Apeldoorn: reduction of necessary parking capacity (a.o. through revised working processes!), allowing expansion of hospital within existing perimeter • Renovation of an old business park in Soest: perceived shortage of parking space tackled through better distribution; contributing to actractiveness • Extra: companies benefit from employee travel plans through lower parking costs, improved productivity and health of employees (cycling facilities!), attractiveness on labour market [results from other research]

Findings on “case effectiveness” • Impacts and effectiveness are hardly an issue (only a few hard results documented) • If impacts are mentioned they lie on fields wide apart: accessibility, solved parking problems, liveability, etc. ….. • There is no such thing as a standard approach • There was always a strong incentive/immediate cause (“preliminary problem perception”) • Perceived success (“effectiveness”?) was linked to these incentives/causes

A wide range of results, linked to a clear cause

Findings on case approaches • No clear ambition; integration in major themes is an exception • No discussions on means and ends; “what are we doing it for?” • No pressure on results or projects • Often lacking: in-depth problem analysis • Every local government (agency) is going its own way

Lessons (1): what kind of projects are effective? • Tailored to the real problems and aiming at win-win situations • Strictly managed towards a desired result (‘as a project’ ) • Logically embedded in procedures or other relevant processes (no independent measures) • Clear causes, requiring clearly defined ambitions

Lessons (2): No effects without willingness! • Mobility management should be treated as mobility management >>>> (projects with clear targets, evaluations, contracts) • Mobility management (in area wise approaches) needs strong local politicians >>>> (the market can take care of the demand side) • “Success has many faces and/or fathers” – as many as there are incentives/immediate causes/drivers (and “access” is only one of those!) >>>> so does effectiveness

Thank you “Where there is a will, there is an effect” English report downloadable from: www.rws-avv.nl > english > products > passenger transport

“Where there is a will, there is an effect”