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Limitations of transport policy

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  • David Metz

Abstract

There is an implication in the notion of 'transport policy' that substantial improvements could be made to the transport system given sufficient ingenuity, investment and good will. This paper argues that such policy aspirations cannot cope with the desire for ever-increasing mobility, a deep and powerful force in modern society. In densely populated countries there is no possibility of meeting the demand for unconstrained movement through construction of additional transport infrastructure, since new and longer journeys would quickly fill the extra capacity until the congestion equilibrium is re-established. What limits mobility in practice is the time individuals have available for travel, time which is equitably distributed. Transport plans need to acknowledge this time constraint as fundamental, and accordingly be realistically modest about what is achievable. It is an illusion that the transport system could be substantially more efficient whilst remaining equitable.

Suggested Citation

  • David Metz, 2002. "Limitations of transport policy," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(2), pages 134-145, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:transr:v:22:y:2002:i:2:p:134-145
    DOI: 10.1080/01441640210121788
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    Cited by:

    1. David Metz, 2003. "Limitations of transport policy: A rejoinder," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(2), pages 243-246, January.
    2. Moshe Givoni, 2008. "A Comment on ‘The Myth of Travel Time Saving’," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(6), pages 685-688, November.
    3. David Banister & Michael Browne & Moshe Givoni, 2010. "Transport Reviews—The 30-super-th Anniversary of the Journal," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 1-10, January.
    4. Rajé, Fiona, 2003. "The impact of transport on social exclusion processes with specific emphasis on road user charging," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 10(4), pages 321-338, October.
    5. Tim Schwanen, 2008. "Reflections on Travel Time Savings: Comments to David Metz," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(6), pages 709-713, November.
    6. Metz, David, 2005. "Journey quality as the focus of future transport policy," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 12(4), pages 353-359, July.
    7. Anable, Jillian & Brand, Christian & Tran, Martino & Eyre, Nick, 2012. "Modelling transport energy demand: A socio-technical approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 125-138.
    8. Roger L. MacKett, 2002. "Comments on 'The limitations of transport policy'," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(3), pages 371-380, January.
    9. Liu, Qiyang & Lucas, Karen & Marsden, Greg & Liu, Yang, 2019. "Egalitarianism and public perception of social inequities: A case study of Beijing congestion charge," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 47-62.

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