Politics plays an important role in any aspect of planning, but none such more than transport planning and the investments and policies that go in to constructing the aspects associated. As with any discipline, politics plays both positive and negative roles in public transport planning, policies and investment; as it shapes decision-making and the degrees of financial support that is given to each project. Because politics brings both positive and negative effects to public transport planning it can both promote and obstruct development. In the case of Auckland, New Zealand, politics plays a negative role, obstructing the development of a better public transport system for the city and surrounding neighborhoods. Although there are various different ways that politics can contribute to public transport planning, policies and investment, many of these roles can have both a positive and a negative impact. In any country the government plays a crucial role in the organisation and distribution of goods and services in the public sector, and to the organisation of policies and investments that surround the transportation system, including public transit. Enhanced and efficent public transport systems are necessary not only to provide better public service, but also to reduce demand for personal vehicles and the various problems associated with it (Wan, Wang, & Sperling, 2013).National governments around the world differ in their social and economic structures, and in particular their infrastructure projects and investments (Galilea & Medda, 2010), and because of this, public transportation differs extensively around the world. The national and/or local government essentially is in charge and runs the various modes of public transpor... ... middle of paper ... ...nsit Benefits and Costs: Best Practices Guidebook. Victoria Transport Policy Institute . Mees, P., & Dodson, J. (2006). Backtracking Auckland: Bureaucratic rationality and public preferences in transport planning. Urban Research Program Issues Paper 5 , 1-20. Mineta, N. Y. (2006). Public-private partnerships strengthen transport investment. Journal of Transportaion,Law,Logistics & Policy , 401-409. Muhammad, I. (2014). Imran Muhammad: Politics keeping hand-brake on public transport progress. Retrieved from The New Zealand Herald. Ni, A. Y. (2012). The risk-averting game of transport public-private partnership. Public Performance and Managment Review , 253-274. Wan, Z., Wang, X., & Sperling, D. (2013). Policy and politics behind the public transportation systems of China's medium-sized cities: Evidence from the Huizhou reform. Utilities policy , 1-8.
When construction takes place, it is usually way before it is actually needed. Of course it is helping prevent dangerous and fatal occurrences but for the most part some of these changes can wait. Instead of spending so much money on our transportation category we should be putting more into education. “The money that the Federal Budget gives for education covers college aid loans, special education programs, free lunch to students in need, anti-discrimination efforts, research, and special programs” (Document D). Education is one of the most important things a person can have. ”
Since the beginning of the United States the American people have been on the move. Public transportation has played a major role in the development of this nation and in bringing its citizens together. In the book “Divided Highways”, author Tom Lewis takes the reader on a journey of the building of the Interstates and the consequences(good and bad) that came from them. Lewis believes that the Interstates are a physical characteristic of America and that it shows “all our glory and our meanness; all our vision and our shortsightedness”(xiv).
These include encouraging commuters to use public transport, decongesting public transport, decentralizing businesses from the Greater Toronto Area, investing in transport infrastructure, passing relevant transport legislation and dialog with stakeholders in transport industry. These solutions aim at discouraging the use of private vehicles and increasing the effectiveness of public transport to increase the capacity and speeds needed to reduce congestion in Toronto. However, it is important to involve all relevant stakeholders when developing solutions to the transport congestion since as earlier discussed, these people may offer very effective solutions to this problem since they are the major road users. The general public will also be keen to follow changes made to improve the transport sector if it is involved in the change process. This will ensure that Toronto has one of the best transport systems not only in North America but across the
Transport is a political factor as it is controlled and affected by legislation. This will impact on the staff and opponents (travelling to the stadium) as the accessibility of transport will impact on travelling times – both positively (may avoid traffic on a train e.g.) and negatively (trains, buses etc. may be cancelled or delayed). The price of transportation will also affect the mode of transport that these groups of people may use. Similarly, price and accessibility of transport will affect the consumers also. The view that consumers hold on transport, therefore, is likely to impact on the business i.e. effort to travel, money to travel etc. as this will influence how often they will visit, what they will spend during their visit etc. According to (Mintel 2011,) the amount of people using train as a mode of transport is on the rise, mea...
...ce, J., & Lehmann, M. (2005). Corporate Awakening – Why (Some) Corporations Embrace Public–Private Partnerships. Business Strategy and the Environment, 14, pp. 216-229. doi:10.1002/bse.471
Automobiles play a major role in today's society. Almost every American owns at least one motorized transportation vehicle. Some say they make our lives better by reaching places faster than before. Others say they are a harmful to the environment. Have they made our society better or worse? They may be fast, but do we as humans want our environment to suffer because of time. Face it, cars pollute. And they release destructive chemicals into the air. Air pollution can threaten the health of many subjects in the environment including human beings.
“The poor public transportation prevents many public-university students from taking full advantage of their education. They have long waits before boarding their buses and miss many of their morning classes and, occasionally, exams.”
In 1952, Charles E. Wilson resigned as President of GM to become Secretary of Defense. At the confirmation he was asked if he could make a decision in the interest of the nation if it were adverse to GM. "Yes sir, I could," Wilson said. "I cannot conceive of one, because for years I thought what was good for our country was good for General Motors and vice versa. The difference does not exist."1 Yet his GM is accused of undermining the American transportation infrastructure and destroying a viable, superior streetcar network in order to sell more cars. Regardless of the validity of this conspiracy theory, the fact remains that America destroyed vast mass transit networks to make way for private and public automotive transportation. The question of whether the transfer from iron to asphalt was advisable also asks what makes a good transportation network. Both transportation systems are valid, but unique features of American cities and culture made automobiles the better choice. Conspiracies of the powerful in the USA pale compared to the tyranny of the majority. Regardless of economic or social considerations, public demand made the key decisions in building the American transportation network.
The economical advantages are those that are most evident in our nation these days. Consumers want products, products need delivering, deliveries require logistics, and logistics cannot be performed without the proper road network. It is here that EU grants have helped, being instrumental in the upgrading of our road infrastructure, allowing them to cope with the increased flow of traffic create...
Finding ways to move goods from one point to another at a reasonable cost and within an acceptable time frame is a growing challenge for global businesses today. The costs and risks associated with transportation are increasing with the advent of globalization and low-cost-country sourcing. Even for companies with local operations only, they have to supply their products to various parts of a country which increases the costs and risks. Since the cost of gasoline has been on an upward trend, high level of efficiency in transportation is required to lower the costs involved and the risks associated with the costs. Costs concepts in transportation include economic, social and accounting costs. The risks and costs involved increases if the various modes of transport are used. There has been concern over many businesses failure to strategically think when they employ multimodal transportation services. Many businesses prefer the least expensive multimodal model instead of choosing the most effective; this trade-off is very expensive with hidden costs and risks increasing significantly (Molenaar, Anderson, Schexnayder, National Research Council (U.S.)., National Cooperative Highway Research Program., American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials., & United States, 2010).
Vassallo, J., Fagan, F., 2005. “Nature or Nurture: Why Do Roads Carry Greater Freight Share in the United States then in Europe” John F Kennedy School of Government ; Harvard University : Massachusetts
Pollins, Harold. "Transport Lines and Social Divisions" from London Aspects of Change: Edited by the Centre for Urban Studies. MacGibbon & Kee, London. 1964.
Here in the state of California, in the midst of the 2008 elections, the citizens voted to approve a $10 billion bond measure based primarily on the arguments listed above. It was initially estimated to cost a total of approximately $38 billion, and the balance after the initial $10 billion was going to come from private investment and the Federal Government. Since 2008, several factors have changed, and while the initial benefits are still desirable, our ability to achieve them in a cost efficient manner has come into doubt. The costs of such a project have skyrocketed, and the actual benefit to cost ratio has lowered significantly. The assumed private funding numbers altered dramatically, and the Federal Government has come into a deficit/money crunch of it’s own. On further analysis, the initial ridership numbers don’t seem to be accurate, as California culture is not one that appears to be ready for the shift that would be required to make such a project feasible. Also, travel times appear to be slower than alternate forms of transportation that currently exist....
Most people take the urban public transportation system for granted. It is used in every aspect of our daily lives: work, education, medical necessities, recreation, etc. It is also important for the transportation of goods and services, which aids the growth and maintenance of our economy. Urban public transportation is the critical component of our quality of life and economic stability. The MBTA, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, is Boston and Eastern Massachusetts’s major transportation service. The MBTA has played a central role in the development of Boston and surrounding cities and towns for more than a century; providing service from 175 cities and towns into Boston. On an average weekday over 1.2 million trips are made on the subway, buses, commuter lines and other services in the mass transit system. With an international airport, a ship port, the highways, and the rail lines to connect regional cities and towns to national and international destinations and markets, Boston’s urban public transportation system has made the region’s growing role in the global economy possible.
The development of urban transportation has not changed with the cities; cities have changed with transportation. This chapter offers an insight into the Past and the future of Urban transportation and is split up into a number of different sections. It includes a timeline of the different forms of transport innovations, starting from the earliest stages of urban transport, dating back to the omnibus (the first type of urban transportation) and working in a chronological order until eventually reaching the automobile. However, these changes in Urban transport did not happen for no reason. Different factors within society meant urban transport needed to evolve; points will be made on why society needed this evolution. In contrast I will observe the problems urban transport has caused in society as a result of its rapid progression. Taking account of both arguments for the evolution of urban transport, I will look at where it will go in the future.