Implementing sustainable urban transport strategies

1. Implementing sustainable urban transport strategies Professor Tony May INTERREG IVB Climate Change Event Rotterdam 9th October 2009

2. The EC definition of sustainable transport • Social • Provides basic access and development needs • Supports safety, human & ecosystem health • Promotes equity within and between generations • Economic • Is affordable, fair and efficient • Supports the economy, regional development • Environmental • Limits emissions and waste within ability to absorb • Uses resources within renewal, replacement rates • Minimises impacts of noise and use of land Source: EC (2001) in EC DGEnv (2005)

3. The focus on cities • European Cities • 60 % of population • 85% of economic activity • Urban transport systems problematic • €100bn p.a. congestion costs • 100,000 premature deaths p.a. from air pollution • and 20,000 p.a. from noise • 13,000 deaths p.a. on urban roads • and 210,000 serious injuries • 30% of urban households without cars • 14% of all CO2 emissions • Urban travel cannot be just a local government problem

4. The Decision Makers’ Guidebook • Designed to help decision-makers develop strategies to meet their own needs and aspirations • Published in 2003, based on European research • In six languages: • English, French, German, • Italian, Spanish, Swedish • Updated in 2005 to reflect results from the EC City of Tomorrow programme • Now available in English on www.konsult,leeds.ac.uk • Also in Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese (almost!)

5. The logical structure for transport policy formulation • Developed to provide a structure for the Guidebook • Encouraging a logical sequence for problem solving • While accepting that conventional decision-making is not necessarily so sequential

6. The search for solutions • The main focus of debate • Possible solutions • Which policy instruments work best • How to combine them into an effective strategy

7. A growing range of policy instruments • Management • Car and bicycle clubs (sharing) • Walking buses • Information • Trip planning systems • In-vehicle real time guidance • Awareness • Personalised travel advice • Company travel plans • Pricing • Road pricing • Private parking controls

8. The KonSULT Knowledgebase Knowledgebase on Sustainable Urban Land use and Transport (www.konsult.leeds.ac.uk) Designed to provide consistent information on a wide range of policy instruments Using a consistent 11 point scale Based on first principles and on international empirical evidence

9. Policy Instruments in KonSULT(www.konsult.leeds.ac.uk) Land use Infrastructure Management Information Awareness Pricing

10. Developing a strategy • No one policy instrument will be sufficient alone • An effective strategy • Uses the full range of policy instruments • Ensures that each policy instrument reinforces the others • Uses one policy instrument to help overcome the barriers to using another

11. The PROPOLIS results[Seven European cities] • Public transport speed, service and fare improvements contribute well • But encourage longer distance travel • Pricing of car use achieves significant benefits • But may encourage relocation • Alternative land use policies have little impact alone • But higher density mixed development linked to public transport can support public transport and pricing measures • Infrastructure schemes can provide benefits • But only if designed to be cost-effective • And consistent with the overall strategy

12. The Optimal Strategies Study results [Six UK cities] • Optimal strategies typically involve • Substantial reductions in fares area-wide • Increases in service frequency within urban areas • Peak period city centre cordon charges • Low cost increases in road capacity • Optimal strategies typically cost more • But strategies with no net financial outlay can be achieved for only 15% lower benefit • Typically involve a 15% reduction in car use • And have benefits of €5000 to €10000 per capita by comparison with current strategies

13. The ECMT study, 2002 • Survey of 168 cities worldwide • Widespread agreement that integrated packages are needed: • public transport enhancements • charging for road use • better road network management • compatible land use plans • But implementing such integrated policy packages “has proven easier said than done” • Need to tackle the barriers to policy development and implementation

14. The ECMT barriers to implementation • Institutional • Split or duplicated responsibility • Process • Identifying objectives, specifying problems • Selecting possible solutions, appraisal, implementation • Political and public acceptability • Information and skills • Financial • Legislative and regulatory [Source: ECMT, 2002, 2006]

15. The DISTILLATE Project • Design and Implementation Support Tools for Integrated Local Land Use, Transport and the Environment(www.distillate.ac.uk) • Vision: • supporting a step change in the development and delivery of sustainable transport and land use strategies • Principal objective: • to develop ways of overcoming the barriers to effective development and delivery of sustainable transport and land use strategies

16. The most problematic instruments Source: DISTILLATE

17. The DISTILLATE products • 18 products: 9 tools; 9 guides • Advice on specifying indicators and targets • Option generation tools for strategies and schemes • Guidance on the effective use of different sources of finance • Simpler models and better representation of more policy instruments • Simpler, more consistent appraisal methods • Good practice in collaboration within and between institutions and stakeholder groups • And a web-based tool to encourage use

18. Recommendations: institutional (Source: ECMT) Coherent national policy framework for transport and land use Coordination between government ministries Transport, Finance, Planning, Environment Devolution of responsibility, finance and skills to lower tiers of government Local transport and land use planning focused on travel-to-work areas Local level coordination between transport and land use, and across all transport modes Private sector involvement designed to coordinate commercial and public policy goals

19. Recommendations: process (Source: ECMT) Consistency over the long term Clearly stated objectives and priorities Problem-based search for solutions Employing the full range of supply-side and demand-side instruments Strategies designed to allocate, manage risk Based on integrated packages Appraisal, monitoring and evaluation based on agreed objectives and indicators, consistently applied Better understanding of good practice in implementation

20. Recommendations: acceptability (Source: ECMT) Political champions to achieve radical change Public understanding of problems and the need for action Demonstration that proposed solutions are the most effective way of solving a problem Effective consultation and participation throughout the policy process Work with the media; avoid complex technical or emotional arguments

21. Recommendations: information (Source: ECMT) Reliable and consistent transport data From both public and private sector Regular monitoring of performance against objectives, targets Benchmarking and awards for successful authorities Better understanding of the cost-effectiveness of different solutions Improved and simplified models Improved and comprehensive appraisal methods Enhanced skills For users and well as operators, planners

22. Recommendations: finance (Source: ECMT) Sustainable long term funding Focused on the strategy, not specific solutions Encouraging the most cost-effective approaches Taxation and charging are important policy instruments Apply as close to the point of use as possible Reflecting externalities, consistent across modes Invest revenues in transport to increase acceptability Use private investment to support the overall strategy

23. So how can we make cities more sustainable? • Sustainability is a direction of travel rather than a measurable goal • But we know how to make European cities more sustainable • A greater focus on public transport, charging for car use and controls on land use • With most transport provision paid for by the user • And greater use of “soft” measures • There are policy limits in the outer suburbs • Resulting from urban sprawl • Making it harder to provide alternatives to car use • But the main barriers are outside the traditional sphere of transport planners and engineers Environmental Sustainability Comprehensive Sustainability Economic Sustainability Social Sustainability

24. So how can we make cities more sustainable? • Overcoming those barriers requires • More coordination between the tiers of government, and between agencies at each level • Consistency in planning over the long term • A problem-led approach to developing solutions and strategies • Political champions and more positive involvement of the public and media • More effective use of data, models and appraisal methods • Financial support for strategies, without inducing policy bias • Legislation and regulations to support these requirements [Source: ECMT] Environmental Sustainability Comprehensive Sustainability Economic Sustainability Social Sustainability