You are currently browsing the category archive for the 'Accessibility' category.
As we become increasingly mobile through having to travel further a field for work and finding that friends and family are more and more dispersed, it comes as no suprise that 1 in 10 motorists are now spending more time in their cars than at home.
The survey of 3000 people conducted by Admiral car insurance made this discovery and in addition revealed some interesting differences in the amount of time people spend in their cars by region.
London came out on top as the place where more people spend more of their time behind the wheel than on their sofa- 1 in 5, whereas just 1 in 25 people in Wales find themselves in this situation.
When it came to looking at differences between the sexes, men were found to be a staggering 3 times more likely to spend more time on the road to women, and this comes in spite of a growth in women drivers.
The Admiral survey also looked into the social element of driving, by asking respondents whether they preffered to drive alone or with a passenger. In this instance it was the Scots who preffered the solo driving experience most (67%) and drivers in Northern Ireland who favoured some company getting from a to b.
The DfT’s 2008 Regional Transport Statistics also indicate that Londoners like to drive alone as the difference in the number of trips made as the car driver as opposed to car passenger was largest in London, suggesting that when the car is used, having a passenger is not so common in the capial.
Source: The Scotsman 27th March 2009 ‘When the car is home from home’
* DfT’s 2008 Regional Transport Statistics
More of Britain’s roads could be designed with the safety of motorcyclists in mind thanks to a new website launched today.
For the first time, the award-winning Institute of Highway Incorporated Engineers Guidelines for Motorcycling are available online at
www.motorcycleguidelines.org.uk.
Broken down into individual chapters it explains how motorcycles need to be considered in policy, design and maintenance, parking and road safety.
Motorcycling is an increasingly popular alternative to the car, cutting congestion in urban areas and providing low-cost mobility in rural areas . Advantages of the motorcycle include independence and mobility; greater access to employment opportunities; and shorter journey times in congested traffic conditions. However, the specific needs of motorcyclists must be taken into account in the design, operation and maintenance of the road environment if road safety is to be maximised.
The website, funded by the Department for Transport and IHIE with support from the RAC Foundation, provides authoritative and practical advice to highways engineers and traffic managers on how to engineer a safer transport environment for motorcycles, mopeds and scooters.
The Government’s Motorcycling Strategy, published in February 2005, set out a plan of action to improve the safety of motorcyclists by facilitating motorcycling as a choice of travel within a safe and sustainable transport framework. The Motorcycling Guidelines website has been created as part of this Strategy.
Launching the new site, Road Safety Minister Jim Fitzpatrick said:
“This website makes the excellent IHIE motorcycling guidelines available to the widest possible audience. Projects like this show the real benefits of the Government’s Motorcycling Strategy, which has brought together a range of expert groups all working towards making motorcyclists safer.
“Motorcyclists are one of the most vulnerable groups on British roads today. They account for just 1% of all road traffic, but for 20% of all those killed or seriously injured. That is why the Government is fully committed to reducing motorcycle casualties and in our Motorcycling Strategy we outlined a series of measures to reduce motorcycle casualties and improve conditions for motorcyclists.”
Sheila Rainger, Acting Director of the RAC Foundation, said “We are delighted to support the Guidelines for Motorcycling website. The motorcycle plays an essential role as a congestion-buster in our cities and an affordable transport option in rural areas. Making the IHIE Guidelines for Motorcycling on available on the internet will help to create a safer environment for riders.”
The Department for Transport, this summer, published a report on the travel aspirations, needs and behaviour of 16- 25 year olds which highlighted how young people in Britain get from A to B and their feelings on the transport choices available to them.
The main findings:
- Triggers on the road to adulthood, such as moving to university or starting a new job, lead to changes in travel and transport use.
- Overall, young people did not have a clear picture about how much they spent on travel.
- Both advantages (e.g independence) and disadvantages (e.g. responsibilty), of car travel were flagged up.
- Almost half (48%) of 17-25 year olds hold a driving license and cars are used for the majority of this age group’s trips.
- When choosing a car, practical, social and cultural considerations were taken into account.
- There were varied feelings about having to rely on other people for lifts ( especially where local transport provision was poor). This depended on the age of the young person, whether the driver was a family member or not, and whether the designated driver was happy to provide a lift. The main restriction of this travel option was not being able to plan last minute trips or stay out till the early hours.
- Limited public transport was met with feelings of a lack of control on personal travel. Also on a concerning note, lack of public transport after school hours meant that students often found it difficult to take part in after school activities.
- Recommendations for transport included: a need to reduce its environmental impact; increase social inclusion; improve the general quality and extent of local provision; enforce rules regarding payment of fares, road tax and insurance; and extend concessions.
- A lack of consideration for the impact of transport on the environment and health was seen as a local concern and an issue for collective reponsibility.
- Both push and pull mechanisms are involved in young people taking up driving lessons, whilst barriers to their uptake, namely cost, also exist.
- Some respondents said their travel choices reflected the travel behaviour of their older family members e.g. one girl said that she has always travelled by bus because her Mum had always done and she assumed this was the only viable option.
- There appeared to be different levels of tolerance regarding different public transport modes. People were more understanding about delays with trains than they were with buses, believing train delays to be unpreventable but bus delays to be down to staff error.
- There was a clear variation in local knowledge of public transport e.g. bus routes.
- Different transport modes were linked to different identities.
- Mood, time, money, weather, activities planned for the day and whether individuals were travelling alone or in a group, were all factors which led to people temporarily changing the mode used.
- Where criteria for choosing a college or university were equal, ease or cost of travel can be the deciding factor, often choosing students to opt for the institution closer to home.
- Some people’s transport choices were automatic, with one clear choice standing out; others were more considered- trialling different modes and weighing up the pros and cons of each; others were interdependent i.e. only one transport mode might be appropriate; whilst some, quite interestingly were, well- quite easy! as the preferred transport mode was what determined the choice of destination and not the other way around.
The RAC Foundation supports the DfT in their recommendation that young people’s views on transport must be listened to so that suitable improvements to provision can be made to meet their needs:
“Transport is both an enabler and a barrier to young peole’s access to employment, education and leisure” (DfT)
In addition, the DfT emphasise that if young people are educated about the environmental impacts of various transport modes then they will be able to make a better informed choice as to how they will travel.
A new online visual mapping tool has been developed by a start-up company in America*, to provide a tour of places from a pedestrian’s perspective.
An interesting concept, which builds on the idea being developed by Google Earth, but do these applications have a useful purpose, or are they just an interesting tool to play with?
Research** recently published by the RAC Foundation and the British Chambers of Commerce found that the uncertainty of journey end points, often leads business travellers to either drive the whole journey (increasingly with satnav as a companion) or hop in a taxi when they get to their destination on the train. This type of tool could certainly be used to help travellers familiarise themselves with the look and feel of a destination before they arrive, to the extent that less taxi and car journey’s are made. Some may say, what is wrong with a traditional map – nothing of course – but it would be interesting to see these tools used in a way, which helps enhance existing journeys.
* Everyscape
** ‘Business Travel: Choice or necessity?’
Source: planetizen.com
Today is Ride to Work Day, part of National Motorcycle Week. I rode to work this morning from the Ace Cafe as one of the MCI’s Bike Squads. Riding to work is great, it gets the brain up and running better than any caffeine injection – you’ve got to be thinking three times faster than your wheels so that, like some sort of traffic grand master, you can predict what moves everyone else is going to make several plays in advance, in order not to be there when that taxi u-turns without warning into one of your many potential paths. So when you get to your desk, you’re already wide awake and ready for the day.
And as predicted by the RAC Foundation last month, riding to work saved me 50% on my normal travel time – 30 mins instead of an hour by tube and bus.
But there’s a cloud on the horizon – the riding in part is great, but finding somewhere safe to leave 2 metres of Triumph remains a challenge. The popularity of motorcycling in London has soared since the introduction of the C-charge and the 7 July public transport bombings – but the number of spaces provided by the councils hasn’t kept pace. So unless you’re in with the lark, your chances of finding enough tarmac are slim:-
And the lack of space leads to an expectation that the next person along can shuffle your bike along a bit if they need to. Now, no-one touches my bike except me (and the volunteers who help me pick it up when I drop it – thanks, all!) so this particular piece of parking etiquette causes me great anxiety!
Westminster Council announced at the beginning of the year that they were giving thought to providing more motorcycle spaces. It would give 2-wheel commuting a big boost if they press ahead with redesignating some bays as a matter of urgency. And if the new spaces have built-in ground anchors, even better.
