In this term, we first introduce two definitions of sustainable transportation, and then explain why it is important. After that, we focus on elements of them. Finally, there will be case study and policy.
What is sustainable transportation?
A simple definition of sustainable transport by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 1999) is "Transportation that does not endanger public health or ecosystems and that meets needs for access consistent with (a) use of renewable resources at below their rates of regeneration, and (b) use of non-renewable resources below the rates of development of renewable substitutes."
The Center for Sustainable Transportation Canada defines a sustainable transportation system as one that (1) allows the basic access needs of individuals and societies to be met safely and in a manner consistent with human and ecosystem health, and with equity within and between generations; (2) is affordable, operates efficiently, offers choice of transport mode, and supports a vibrant economy; (3) limits emissions and waste within the planet's ability to absorb them, minimizes consumption of non-renewable resources, reuses and recycles its components, and minimizes the use of land and the production of noise.
Why is this important?
1. Transportation is the major of world's petroleum products, fossil fuels and it requires huge amounts of land and other material resources.
EIA notes that, in 2008, 71 percent of petroleum was used in the transportation sector. Petroleum provided 95 percent of the total energy for transportation in 2008.
C:\Users\dell\Desktop\figure_110-lg.jpg
Source: ANNUAL ENERGY OUTLOOK 2012 Figure 110
2. Transportation has significant consequences for ecological conditions. It is the major emitter of CO2 and other GHGs.
From 1999, transportation-related carbon dioxide emissions has more than industrial sources and energy-related CO2 emissions as the world's largest end-use
C:\Users\dell\Desktop\QQ截图20121203233731.jpg
Source: Energy Information Administration, preliminary estimate for 2008.
3. Transportation affects quality of life.
Transportation not only generates wastes to create various adverse environmental and social impacts like scrap cars, it also has major consequences for human health like noise.
C:\Users\dell\Desktop\QQ截图20121204004437.jpg
Source: Traffic Noise in Green and Open Spaces, 07.03 of Berlin Digital Environmental Atlas
In fact, the three factors are commonly considered the essential dimensions of a sustainable transportation system.
Elements of Transportation System Sustainability
Transportation system sustainability should at the very least incorporate attributes of system effectiveness and system impacts on economic development, environmental integrity, and the social quality of life. Thus, the four essential dimensions of transportation system sustainability could be considered to be system effectiveness, economic sustainability, environmental sustainability, and social sustainability. Necessary factors of transportation system effectiveness include system performance for multimodal transportation systems such as regional highways and public transit systems. Necessary environmental factors for sustainability include resource preservation (such as fossil fuels and land), air and noise pollution prevention, and greenhouse effect prevention for broader sustainability issues associated with the livability of current and future generations. Necessary economic factors for sustainability include economic efficiency, financial affordability, and regional economic development through improved accessibility. Necessary social factors for sustainability include social equity related to income and minority groups, public health, safety and security, accessibility to various services, and all these four factors inevitably affect overall quality of life.
Case study: United States (Georgia)
As in several metropolitan areas around the world, the automobile is the dominant mode of transportation in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. In 2002, the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), the region's Metropolitan Planning Organization, recorded a mode share of home-based work trips at 91.78%, with single occupancy vehicle share at 80.72%, carpool share at 11.06%, and public transit share at 8.22% (ARC, 2002). Highways are thus the predominant infrastructure for transportation. In 2002, Georgia's transportation system encompassed 113,655 miles (182,910 km) of public roads, 4,853 miles (7,810 km) of railroad, 103 publicly owned airports, and four shipping ports. Georgia is also served by twelve urban transit systems including the Metropolitan Atlanta
Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) that serves Atlanta and 82 rural transit systems (GDOT, 2002).
Population and Vehicle Ownership in Georgia, U.S., 1990-2002
Year
Population
Vehicle
Number
(thousands)
Annual Increase
Number
(thousands)
Annual Increase
1930
2,908,506
-
NA
-
1940
3,123,723
7.40%
NA
NA
1950
3,444,578
10.27%
NA
NA
1960
3,943,116
14.47%
NA
NA
1970
4,589,575
16.39%
NA
NA
1980
5,463,105
19.03%
NA
NA
1990
6,478,216
18.58%
NA
NA
1991
6,621,279
2.21%
NA
NA
1992
6,759,474
2.09%
NA
NA
1993
6,894,092
1.99%
NA
NA
1994
7,045,900
2.20%
NA
NA
1995
7,188,538
2.02%
6,192,515
NA
1996
7,332,225
2.00%
6,356,164
2.64%
1997
7,486,094
2.10%
6,317,832
-0.60%
1998
7,636,522
2.01%
6,979,592
10.47%
1999
7,788,240
1.99%
7,059,719
1.15%
2000
8,186,453
5.11%
7,243,077
2.60%
2001
-
21.60%
(1990-2000)
7,396,731
2.12%
Data adapted from the Intermodal Transportation Database Homepage and U.S. Census Bureau Homepage
Like several metropolitan areas around the world, Metro Atlanta faces severe congestion, with the associated air quality and respiratory health issues. Rapid population and a booming economy have contributed to increasing traffic congestion and reduced air quality in the Metro Area. To control traffic congestion and air pollution, Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) has developed a high-tech intelligent transportation system (ITS): the NAVIGATOR, which monitors more than over 200 miles of highway through the use of state-of-the-art video cameras, changeable message signs, and data management technologies to relay real-time traffic conditions 24 hours a day to a Transportation Management Center (TMC).
http://www.destination360.com/north-america/us/georgia/images/s/georgia-getting-around.jpg
Complementing the system is GDOT's network of highway emergency response operators (HERO): incident response units with specially trained personnel who can deal quickly with accidents and disabled vehicles. HEROs are important not only for their emergency services but for congestion management as well because in Metro Atlanta, while slightly under half (48%) of the congestion delay is normal recurring (volume-related), slightly over half (52%) is from non-recurring (incident-related) delay. Other measures to manage congestion include 90 miles of high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, 88 park and ride lots, and 2,943 miles of bicycle and pedestrian routes (GDOT Homepage, 2005).
Transportation System Sustainability in the Policy Making Context
The conceptual representation of interactions between sustainability dimensions and the outer sphere can be used as an effective analogy to transportation system sustainability in the policy making context. The figure illustrates a particular hierarchical relationship among the four sustainability dimensions and possible outer policy variables that interact with transportation system sustainability.
The British Government's White Paper (www.parliament.uk) on Transport has a significant effect for transport planning in the UK. Combining with the figure, we can recognize deeply about White Paper. First of all, a transportation and land use decision sequentially influences mode choice, vehicle miles traveled, and traffic congestion. The uncertain effects of these variables affect transportation system effectiveness by improving mobility and reliability, for example. A decision and the resulting system effectiveness will consequently influence the environmental factors of sustainability: land and fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and air/noise pollution. At the same time, a decision and the resulting system effectiveness will also affect the economic factors of sustainability: improved accessibility, travel cost, total time spent in traffic, and user welfare. Finally, a decision and the resulting system effectiveness, environmental, and economic level of sustainability will subsequently affect the social factors of sustainability: accessibility, equity of emission exposure and welfare changes, safety, human health, and overall quality of life.
Acronyms:
ARC: Atlanta Regional Commission
OEDC: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
TMC: Transportation Management Center
Useful websites:
Transport studies unit: http://www.tsu.ox.ac.uk/events/
Our future planet: http://www.ourfutureplanet.org/topic-transport-travel
International Institute of Sustainable Transportation: http://www.ecotopia.com/st/
