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2014 | Book

Overview of Handbook of Sustainable Travel Read chapter Read first chapter

Handbook of Sustainable Travel

Editors: Tommy Gärling, Dick Ettema, Margareta Friman

Publisher: Springer Netherlands

Part of: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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About this book

This volume gathers distinguished researchers on travel behavior from a variety of disciplines, to offer state-of-the-art research and analysis encompassing environmental, traffic and transport psychology; transport planning and engineering; transport geography; transport economics; consumer services research; environmental sociology and well-being research. The underlying dilemma is that neither contemporary transportation technology nor contemporary travel behaviors are sustainable. The path toward sustainability is complex, because the consequences of changing technology and attempts to change travel preferences can be extreme both in economic and in social terms. The Handbook of Sustainable Travel discusses transportation systems from environmental, social and economic perspectives, to provide insights into the underlying mechanisms, and to envisage potential strategies towards more sustainable travel. Part I offers an introduction to the subject, with chapters review historical and future trends in travel, the role of travel for a good society, and the satisfaction of travelers with various features of travel options. Part II proceeds from the fact that the car is the backbone of today’s transportation system, and that a break with automobiles is likely to be necessary in the future. Contributors review the development of private car use, explore economic and psychological reasons why the car has become the primary mode of transport and discuss how this can be changed in the future. Part III addresses the social sustainability of travel, providing insights into the social costs and benefits of leisure, business and health travel, and taking into account the social costs or benefits of measures whose goals are primarily environmental. The authors provide the necessary background to judge whether proposed transport policies are also sustainable from a social perspective. Part IV highlights future alternatives to physical travel and surveys ecologically sustainable travel modes such as public transport and non-motorized modes of transportation.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter

Introduction

Frontmatter
Overview of Handbook of Sustainable Travel
Abstract
Current transportation systems that heavily entails > rely on car and air travel are unsustainable from an environmental and health point of view, primarily owing to that > because car and air travel produces greenhouse gases contributing to global climate change as well as causes local health hazards. Transport policies aiming to reduce car and air travel may have negative social and economic personal effects by reducing accessibility to services and social opportunities. Alternative travel modes are only sustainable under certain conditions. Therefore, an integrative view of sustainability, recognizing environmental, social, and economic aspects is necessary. These issues are briefly introduced, followed by an outline of Handbook of Sustainable Travel that describes the historical development of travel resulting in ecological, social, and psychological effects (Part I), the unsustainability of current car travel and the effectiveness of transport policies to reduce car use (Part II), the social sustainability of travel (Part III), and the directions towards more sustainable forms of travel (Part IV).
Dick Ettema, Margareta Friman, Tommy Gärling
Spatial, Generational and Gendered Trends and Trend-Breaks in Mobility
Abstract
Long-term trends and potential trend conversions in mobility are addressed, with special focus on the Swedish population. Consistent with observations of “peak travel” reported from other countries, we find that growth in everyday travel has recently stagnated and declined. Trends differ significantly between demographic groups. At a general level, there is a tendency towards (upward) convergence between women and men and a shift in travel volumes from young to old age groups. The daily travel by young women has been rather constant, for men under 45 years old it has been reduced, and in the youngest age group the decline is substantial. The observed travel reductions among young indicate that car-intensive lifestyles may not be strongly structurally determined. The implications for sustainable travel partly depend on travel development at higher time-spatial scales. The fact that intermittent transnational mobility has grown rapidly, not least among the young age groups, suggests a substitution of international travel for national travel.
Lotta Frändberg, Bertil Vilhelmson
Benefits of Travel: Needs Versus Constraints in Uncertain Environments
Abstract
Why do we travel? Because we want to – or because we have no other choice? Some thoughts are presented about the benefits of travel from an individual and societal perspective. Travel is considered to represent induced demand in that the spatial configuration of land use and facilities requires individuals and households to travel in order to participate in their daily activities, which in turn are instrumental to achieving their needs, desires, and aspirations. Travel is however often more than only an episode of negative utility between two activity episodes. It may be a positive act of a temporary break from routines or an opportunity to release frustration, chill down, and recharge for things to come. Moreover, travel is also an opportunity to having a moment for oneself and enjoying the passing of the landscape and the brief non-obligatory, superficial encounters with others. These notions are used to derive a formalization that identifies the conditions under which the utility of travel becomes positive.
Soora Rasouli, Harry J. P. Timmermans
Satisfaction and Travel Choices
Abstract
Linkages between activities, travel, and overall subjective well-being (SWB) are analyzed. SWB is broadly defined as the evaluation of the cognitive and affective components of human experiences. Developments in the measurement of subjective well-being (SWB) and the application of SWB research to travel are reviewed, with a particular emphasis on a modelling framework linking SWB to travel attributes and travel behaviour. Empirical evidence from the measurement of SWB in activities and travel has shown that travel plays a role for overall well-being and that the timing at which travel well-being is measured matters due to the dynamic nature of well-being. It is argued that SWB and utility are the same but a distinction needs to be made among the different notions of utility. Consequently, an extended random utility model framework with SWB measures as additional indicators of utility is presented, and an application of this framework to travel mode choice is shown to yield an improved model of travel mode choice.
Maya Abou-Zeid, Moshe Ben-Akiva

Car Use

Frontmatter
The Unsustainability of Car Use
Abstract
A general overview of the drawbacks of car use is first presented. Drawbacks relate to environmental impacts due to emissions of CO2 (climate change), of NOx (acidification, air quality), of PM, CO and HC (air pollution), as well as to noise emission, social, safety, and health impacts. The health impacts are discussed in more detail. An indication is given of the monetary value of these negative impacts. Next the share of transport in a selection of emissions is presented, showing that it has a large share in several emissions. A conceptual framework is proposed identifying the determinants of the negative impacts of car use on society. The conceptual framework is also drawn on to give an overview of possible policy measures to reduce the environmental impacts of car use. Measures include restrictions, pricing, infrastructure provision, land-use planning, public transport policies, marketing, education and communications. Transport does not only have negative impacts on society, but also positive impacts. The health effects of walking and cycling, being a positive benefit that contrary to accessibility benefits is often overlooked. Finally, the unsustainability of car use is highlighted.
Bert van Wee
Psychological Motives for Car Use
Abstract
People buy and use cars for a range of different reasons. The (perceived) value of cars, compared to other more sustainable modes of travel, is usually described in instrumental outcomes (e.g. relative speed and cost). But cars are also useful objects for non-verbal communication of people’s achievements and identities (symbolic value) and buying and driving cars can elicit feelings of thrill, excitement, stress and embarrassment (affective value). It is argued that the relative importance of different instrumental, symbolic and affective outcomes is largely subjective and varies significantly between situations and individuals. These (perceived) outcomes can form significant barriers for behaviour change, but they can also be levered to promote more sustainable behaviours. If the final goal of transport policies is to promote sustainable travel it is important to gain a comprehensive insight into the different psychological motives for car use. More research into the relative importance of the three different types of outcomes, the relationships between them and the effectiveness of interventions targeting the different aspects is needed in order to help develop more effective sustainable transport policies.
Birgitta Gatersleben
Pricing Methods to Influence Car Use
Abstract
The use of price signals to influence car use is supported by economic theory and has the advantage of generating funds that may be used to solve transport and other problems. Pure economic theory suggests that, if travellers were charged the full costs they impose on society, their behaviour would change and overall costs would be reduced. Unfortunately, the transport market has a number of imperfections which result in inefficient behaviour. Foremost among the imperfections are the fact that important externalities of movement (congestion, emissions, accidents) are un-priced and that many of the real costs of motoring (maintenance, insurance, depreciation) are not fully perceived by drivers. Imposition of charges to cover the externalities can help to reduce inefficiencies but requires a number of hurdles to be overcome. We identify the need to ensure that pricing signals are clearly perceived and linked to car users’ behavioural decisions. We discuss the effectiveness, efficiency, and political acceptability of a number of pricing mechanisms including car ownership taxes, fuel tax, parking charges, tolls (inter-urban and urban), congestion charges or road user charges, and pay-as-you-drive insurance. Recommendations are made to apply these measures in a concerted and complementary way to influence car use.
Peter Bonsall, Luis Willumsen
Social Marketing in Travel Demand Management
Abstract
Social marketing is an increasingly popular means of Travel Demand Management (TDM) for promoting non-car modes of travel that has proven to be effective, in particular if combined with structural improvements. Successful social marketing is based on a thorough understanding of targeted people’s needs, wants, and perceived barriers. It uses a combination of means to create an attractive offering tailored to these needs, wants, and perceived barriers. It applies established marketing techniques for catching attention to the offerings. However, there are limits to what social marketing can accomplish. In particular, social marketing is limited to cases where only perceived and not real barriers prevent people from using alternative travel modes. A review is given of research on and practical experiences of social marketing in TDM as a basis for evaluating its usefulness.
John Thøgersen
Psychological Contributions to the Development of Car Use Reduction Interventions
Abstract
In the last decades research on the determinants of travel behaviour has been guided by the assumption that this behaviour is the result of reasoned and conscious intention. However, research on its habitual nature provides strong evidence that travel behaviour is also influenced by automatic impulsive processes activated by situational cues outside conscious awareness. This dual-system perspective has important implications for the development of interventions aiming to promote car-use reduction. Such interventions are probably most effective if they simultaneously attempt to change the contents of the reflective system, block the automatic activation of car-use habits, and create situational and dispositional circumstances that are conducive for effective self-regulation of behaviour change. Based on this insight prototypical intervention types are presented targeting changes in the content of the reflective system and blocking the automatic activation of car-use habits.
Sebastian Bamberg
Theoretical Underpinnings of Practical Strategies for Changing Travel Behaviour
Abstract
Several types of practical strategies have been implemented to change travel behaviour in a socially desirable direction. Examples include investments in infrastructure designed to increase the benefits of using non-motorized travel modes and measures to decrease the benefits of car use. Behavioural change strategies termed mobility management have also been implemented to increase awareness and influence psychological factors to encourage voluntary change from car use to other travel modes. An integrated process model of behavioural change is described. The model implies important roles of intention, attitude, awareness, responsibility, moral, norm, and habit. It is important to identify and understand how these psychological variables involved in behavioural change are influenced by transport policies as well as how they operate irrespectively of a particular transport policy. In this context, it is argued that a combination of transport policy measures will be more effective in changing travel behaviour than will single measures.
Satoshi Fujii, Ayako Taniguchi

Travel and Social Sustainability

Frontmatter
Social Exclusion and Travel
Abstract
Within a triple bottom line approach to travel, the social goal area is perhaps least understood. A number of key concepts are explored that are central to understanding the social contribution of travel, with a focus on links to social inclusion and wellbeing. Measurement of relevant concepts is explained and relationships are established between mobility, household income, social capital, sense of community, and risk of social exclusion. This is shown to be related to wellbeing. The analysis enables estimation of the value of increased travel, as it contributes to social inclusion and improved wellbeing. Those at most risk of social exclusion are shown to be in particular need of higher levels of social interaction for which travel is central. Policy implications of the findings are presented, including the importance of extending travel choice and linking to emerging thinking about accessibility planning.
John Stanley, Janet Stanley
Rose Tinted Memories as a Cause of Unsustainable Leisure Travel
Abstract
Most people strive to become happier. Although a substantial increase in the cognitive component of happiness is limited due to heredity, there is still room for substantial gains in the affective component of happiness through environmental factors and behavioural choices. One way to become happier is to undertake leisure travel. The effect of leisure travel on happiness tends however to be short-lived, which may cause individuals in affluent nations to travel more often. A vast increase in leisure travel is also forecasted for developing and emerging industrialized countries. Rosy recollections of past experiences of leisure travel may trigger booking another trip. A growth in travel frequency and air travel in particular increases emissions that contribute to climate change. We argue that the main driver for leisure travel is the rose tinted memories of past leisure trips. However, these memories are valued against the context of peer pressure and social norms. Based on previous research findings the processes that contribute to the development of unsustainable leisure travel are discussed.
Jeroen Nawijn, Paul Peeters
Health and Travel
Abstract
Awareness of the many different connections between health and travel is growing. While safety has long been the pre-eminent health concern in the transportation field, the health impacts of harmful pollutants became a public concern starting in the 1950s, and concerns over a decline in active forms of travel rose to prominence in the last decade. Efforts to address these concerns recognize that driving has negative impacts on health, while the alternatives can have positive impacts. Travel choices are thus central to all three health concerns. Strategies that aim to improve the healthiness of travel by changing these choices fall into three general categories: reducing the harms of driving, reducing the amount of driving, and increasing the use of active travel modes. Many of these strategies are synergistic in that they help to address all three health concerns simultaneously and are more effective when employed together. Given the substantial connections between health and daily household travel, it is important that health impacts be considered in the formation of transport policy. The movement towards “sustainable transport planning” offers an unprecedented opportunity to bring health considerations into the mainstream by recognizing health as a critical component of sustainability.
Susan Handy
Business Travel and Sustainability
Abstract
Business travel has been relatively neglected in strategies to promote sustainable travel. A two-stage approach is taken beginning by showing how sustainability of business travel is relevant not only environmentally, but also from an economic and social perspective. On the one hand, this form of travel helps to generate jobs in numerous business sectors, not only in transportation. On the other hand, the social dimension cannot be ignored either, since business travel is often a source of fatigue and stress, and can generate or exacerbate both health problems and family problems. In the second stage, we consider the strategies that business travellers, companies, and governments may adopt to move business travel in a more sustainable direction. However, as with other forms of travel, business travel cannot be made more sustainable through initiatives that focus solely on travel.
Anne Aguiléra

Future Sustainable Travel

Frontmatter
Do Future Land-Use Policies Increase Sustainable Travel?
Abstract
Land-use policies are argued by both researchers and policy makers to be a strategy for reducing negative impacts on the environment through reduced motorized-vehicle travel. But does research support this argument? In this context we discuss whether land-use policies make sense as a strategy for reducing motorized travel and lessening environmental impacts. We focus on the following propositions with respect to daily household travel: (1) Land-use policies can have a significant effect on travel behaviour depending on the scope and scale of the policies and on the particular context of the effort; (2) Even when land-use policies have a minimal effect on travel behaviour they confer benefits in the form of accessibility improvements, and; (3) Land-use policies should be evaluated for a much broader range of benefits rather than changes in travel behaviour alone.
Bert van Wee, Susan Handy
Integrated Transportation Solutions: Images of the Future
Abstract
For most cities sustainable travel is an important transport policy aspiration, implying amongst other objectives much less dependence on oil and much reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Some jurisdictions have adopted stringent CO2 reduction targets. But all, including the more progressive cities, are experiencing major difficulties in moving towards greater sustainability in travel behaviour. The private car (fuelled by petrol and diesel) remains the mainstream mode of travel under current trends and prospective trajectories. The different baselines, projections, and opportunities are considered for two very different contexts, London and Jinan (China), drawing on two previous modelling studies carried out by us. The likely possibilities for reducing transport CO2 emissions are examined, developing normative and qualitative scenarios, combined with a more quantitative understanding of the likely make up of the future images. Each scenario is compared relative to the current business as usual projections for transport CO2 emissions. The conclusion comments on the potential for achieving change, on the need for the more radical “discontinuity” measures which may move towards sustainable mobility, and also on the continuing difficulties in implementation.
Robin Hickman, David Banister, Jian Liu, Jimin Zhao
High Quality Public Transport: Gaining Acceptance of Bus Rapid Transit Systems
Abstract
The selection of appropriate public transport investments that will maximise the likelihood of delivering the levels of service required to provide a serious alternative to the car is high on the agendas of many metropolitan governments. Mindful of budget constraints, it is crucial to ensure that such investments offer the greatest value for money. We promote the view that integrated multi-modal systems that provide frequency and connectivity in a network-based framework offer the best way forward. A mix of public transport investments with buses as feeder services and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) as trunk services can offer a greater coverage and frequency than traditional forms of rail, even at capacity levels often claimed of rail. Design features are important in order to promote good performance, and evidence is presented as to the importance of the various design elements to driving patronage. Decision-makers need to recognize that implementation issues can be complex to achieve a successful outcome of a BRT system contributing to the public transport network.
David A. Hensher, Corinne Mulley, Zheng Li
Non-motorized Travel as a Sustainable Travel Option
Abstract
In many developed countries walking and bicycling are not extensively used as a means of transportation. Further, the share of these non-motorized travel modes (as a percentage of all trips) has been reducing over time. The increasingly low use of walk and bicycle modes of transportation, and the concomitant increasing use of motorized vehicles for transportation, may be associated with several factors, including land use and development patterns, traffic safety and personal security concerns, and perceptions of and attitudes towards non-motorized transport. These factors manifest themselves differently in developing and developed countries, but throughout the world the increasing reliance on motorized transport contributes to serious traffic congestion problems, air quality degradation, and greenhouse gas emission increases. In addition to transportation professionals, health agencies are also paying increased attention to non-motorized modes, or “active transport” as a route to improve public health. We discuss the many benefits of non-motorized travel, identify its facilitators and impediments, analyze its utilization in select developed and developing countries, review previous studies of the effectiveness of strategies to promote it, and recommend possible pathways to promote non-motorized travel as a sustainable travel option.
Christina Bernardo, Chandra Bhat
E-Commerce: Implications for Travel and the Environment
Abstract
Current consumption and its rapid increase are considered unsustainable. It may dramatically increase negative externalities on both the local and global scale. The adoption of information communication technology in retailing products is considered to have the potential to radically change the retail sector and affect sustainability. Current consumption patterns and the major developments in the retail system are reviewed. A discussion follows of the focus of e-commerce’s effects on social sustainability as well as its potential impacts on freight transportation and personal travel. To assess e-commerce’s net implications on sustainability, it is important to consider both the short and long term. The short-term implications involve environmental externalities and transport flows. The long-term implications include effects on urban nature and structure through its possible effect on retail spatial structure.
Orit Rotem-Mindali
The Need to Change How People Think About the Consequences of Travel
Abstract
We argue that the general public and politicians think more about the short-term individual benefits of travel than they think about the long-term societal costs. One explanation is that they have less knowledge of the latter than they have of the former. Another explanation is that they like people in general are more concerned about their own wellbeing and the wellbeing of their close relatives than they are concerned about the well-being of unknown others. Yet, in a democratic society changes towards sustainable travel are not likely to materialize unless people shift their thinking about travel to placing a higher weight on its long-term societal costs than the short-term benefits. Research findings documenting these costs may affect the general public only if they are accurately conveyed by different sources including governments, mass media, producers and providers of travel services, and other people. We identify many current obstacles to this in need to be removed.
Tommy Gärling, Dick Ettema, Margareta Friman
Backmatter
Metadata
Title
Handbook of Sustainable Travel
Editors
Tommy Gärling
Dick Ettema
Margareta Friman
Copyright Year
2014
Publisher
Springer Netherlands
Electronic ISBN
978-94-007-7034-8
Print ISBN
978-94-007-7033-1
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7034-8