Chapter One Literature review of sustainable urban travel concepts

1 Chapter One Literature review of sustainable urban travel concepts – problems, policy, planners, implementation and research. This chapter outlines the environmental, social and resource depletion problems associated with high-level urban car use, then details some current planning responses. That leads to a theoretical analysis of the underlying behaviour and choices urban dwellers make, highlighting the importance of context, especially price signals. The final section of this chapter details reasons for the Cairns/Townsville urban travel study. As reductions in petroleum supply draw near, prices will inevitably rise, causing social dislocation and diminished choice. To forestall this, and reduce some environmental impacts, governments globally are advocating principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD). As it relates to urban travel, ESD considers more integrated urban land use, greater reliance on public transport, and the facilitation of urban walking and cycling. In most countries there are now changing concepts and technology, infrastructure, land use and behaviour, all aiming to develop or nurture sustainable urban travel. These initiatives and planning efforts to meet needs locally may help reduce urban travel. The urban travel necessary to support the widespread urbanisation in the past 50 years has been increasingly powered by petroleum. Since the early 1970s, environmental and quality of life concerns have lead to discussions about urban sustainability. This thesis focuses on personal urban transport energy use, motivated by the need to plan for the post-petroleum era. It considers whether urban dwellers are prepared to reduce solo car use through changing travel patterns and less travel-dependent service provision. There is increasing global recognition of the need for a paradigm and behavioural shift toward principles of ecologically sustainable urban development (AMCORD 1995). Government policy is trending toward user-friendly cities with minimal reliance on

Chapter One Literature review of sustainable urban travel concepts

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