Welcome to this week's edition of our newsletter, your 5-minute guide to key strategic transport topics around the world.

The biggest news this week is probably the death of Donald Shoup, the author of 'The High Cost of Free Parking'. A book that revolutionised how people around the world thought about parking. I wanted to do his legacy justice, so next week's blog will focus on parking.

The UK is having a debate about devolution, including transport. The key issues apply in many places around the world so that is our lead this week.

• Devolving transport
• The missing link in fare evasion
• What people want from the 15-minute city
• Transport ambition, lessons from Singapore
• Walking the talk: why active transport promises rarely hit the road
• Leadership topic - leading by example
• Innovation and tools

Devolving Transport

A key challenge in transport is working out what levels of government are best placed to do what - what should be done at a national/federal level, what should be done at a state/regional level, and what should be done at a local level.

The UK is having this debate as part of a devolution push by the national government.

Here are a few factors to consider:

• There is often a big gap between where decisions are best made and where funding will reside. National governments are usually much better financed than local governments. Multi-year agreements provide funding certainty and efficiency and enable capacity to be developed.
• Local and regional governments are often more responsive to local needs, flexible and innovative.
• The regional scope of the transport solution can provide a useful rule of thumb:

local scope = local government, e.g. cycle lane

regional scope = regional government, e.g. metro line

national scope = national government, e.g. national rail network.

However, alignment is critical to success:

• Networks are important. For example, cycle lanes benefit significantly from being part of a network. This means getting local governments to work with regional governments to agree on a strategic network, even if implemented locally.
• System-wide alignment matters. A local government encouraging car use will be at odds with a regional strategy seeking to reduce car dependency.
• Land use plans should be aligned with transport plans, e.g. building higher density around transport hubs.

The governance for achieving and incentivising alignment is a key consideration.

What next?

Are your devolution, governance, and alignment arrangements optimising outcomes?

The Missing Link in Fare Evasion

This week, I have seen several items related to fare evasion, including in Queensland, Australia, where very cheap fares have recently been introduced, and New York, where there is a significant problem, particularly on buses, where only around half of people pay.

Six months ago, fares were dropped to just 50c in Queensland, yet more than 3000 people were fined for fare evasion.

The article asked why people evade fares even when the price is nearly free.

There was a 27% drop in fare evasion, so there is an economic factor. However, social factors are also very important.

"When passengers perceive the system as unfair (due to factors such as unreliable service, high fares or lack of investment), fare evasion rises. Further, if fare dodging behaviour is normalised within a city or demographic, it spreads like contagion."

Other research shows that the public is mostly unaware of the subsidy levels required for public transport. If you think that the system is profitable, perhaps you are more likely to abuse the system.

Of course, fare evasion drains funding, ultimately reducing services.

The social aspect suggests we could do more to explain to people why paying fares is essential.

What next?

Do you have data on people’s attitudes to paying fares in your jurisdiction? If so, are they based on misconceptions?

What people want from the 15-minute city.

​A survey has recently been conducted in New Zealand around the 15-minute city.

There were important key takeaways for transport:

• People’s priorities for amenities they wanted to access the most were nature, parks and gardens and local shops and services. Employment came a long way behind in third place. This was an interesting finding as transport systems rarely prioritise open space as a place to connect people to, tending to focus on shops and employment. Should we be incorporating open space access into our transport planning more than we do?
• It confirmed that most people would want to be able to access their chosen amenity within around 20 minutes, regardless of mode.
• The survey also identified gender differences in people’s travel preferences after dark. Whilst most transport people would expect a difference, the size was significant. 86% of women were uncomfortable walking after dark compared to 12% of men. Even on public transport this was 81% v 17%. New Zealand clearly needs to do more to provide confidence for women in their travel at night.

What next?

This was a survey of people in New Zealand. Things could be very different in your jurisdiction. Do you have the data to inform your decision-making?

Transport Ambition, Lessons From Singapore.

This week, I am taking a deep dive into one element of Singapore’s transport strategy, known as the Land Transport Master Plan - its ambition.

Whilst many jurisdictions have ambitious visions, Singapore stands out because of its specificity and concrete targets to get there.

Here is what Singapore is looking to achieve:

“A 45-Minute City with 20-Minute Towns in 2040.”

What does this mean? They elucidate:

“All journeys to the nearest neighbourhood centre using Walk-Cycle-Ride modes of transport will take less than 20 minutes.”

“We will aim for 9 in 10 peak-period journeys using Walk-Cycle-Ride to be completed in less than 45 minutes.”

This is highly ambitious, and they add more detail on how they will get there:

"By 2030, 80% of households would be within a 10-minute walk from a train station"

This level of train station density is very rare.

Currently, Singapore ranks around 15th in the world at 55% of the population within 1km of a station. Hong Kong is at the top with 75%.

To achieve this, Singapore will have doubled its new rail lines from 182km in 2013 to 360km in 2030.

It is, of course, aided in this by being one of the most dense cities in the world.

Key challenge

Every jurisdiction has a different context, so what qualifies as ambitious needs to differ. Most places are nowhere near as dense as Singapore, and cannot hope to replicate its ambition for access to a train station. However, most cities should be able to deliver their own ambitious targets, whether in bus access, active transport, or something else.

What next?

What are the ambitious targets you should be setting for your jurisdiction?

​Walking the Talk: Why Active Transport Promises Rarely Hit the Road​

In my blog this week, I examined why there is often a large gap between the rhetoric on active transport and reality and how we can close that gap.

In particular, I looked at how we can give decision-makers the confidence to ‘go large’ on active transport and found 12 enablers that can be deployed:

Building an Active Transport Culture:

1. Provide a compelling vision

2. Start changing mindsets

3. Start with quick wins that build momentum

Strategic Planning:

4. Create a substantial dedicated active transport budget

5. Set ambitious targets

6. Build out a network

Implementation:

7. Build your delivery capability before you need it

8. Focus on rapid deployment

9. Collect data

Strategic Communications:

10. When benefits become visible, communicate them relentlessly

11. Manage stakeholders strategically, not reactively

Additional:

12. Consider other incentives

What next?

Talking to decision makers about using the enablers to ramp up active transport.

Leading by Example

Do you walk the walk, or do you only talk the talk?

The best leaders know that they are always leading by example. Reflect on these questions of yourself:

• Write down examples of where you lead by example.
• Are you aligning the priorities you set the organisation with the examples you provide?
• How can you lead by example in areas where you have gaps?
• Here are some examples:
  • Do you use public and active transport?
  • Do you drive an electric vehicle?
  • Do you engage with frontline transport workers?
  • Do you champion passengers?
  • Do you demonstrate collaboration and working across silos?

What next?

Choose one thing you are going to do to lead by example this week and action it.

​Why transport policymakers should embrace AI.​

Whilst this article on the uses of AI in government is focused on generic policymaking, it applies to transport in many ways, including:

Research, drafting policy, consultation response analysis, legislation, and project monitoring.

​Improving Road Safety​

This report from the International Road Assessment Program (iRAP) contains practical steps for implementing safer roads.