A Backwards Step - MMD#380
Good day my good friend.
For those of you planning to come and see my presentation on Playbooks and Field Guides: making navigating the future of transport easier, the session is in Room 1 at 1pm. So go grab your lunch and see me there! If you are not at Transport Practitioners Meeting, my presentation as well as the Playbook and Field Guide I am talking about can be found here. Enjoy yourself!
If you have any suggestions for interesting news items or bits of research to include in this newsletter, you can email me.
Mobility Camp is taking place on 29th September 2023 in Birmingham. It would be great to see you there. Get your tickets now.
James
The wrong direction
You may have seen the news that pedestrian deaths in the good ol’ US of A are at a 40 year high. Pedestrian casualties have risen 77% between 2010 and 2021 in the US. Thankfully, here in the UK the trend is very much in the other direction, and it is the same across the EU. But this trend in the USA is very much a worrying one in a country that really needs to increase the number of people walking. But why is this happening?
The analysis doesn’t reveal why these fatalities have occurred, though it has made a series of recommendations such as better design and improving road user behaviours. The CDC also recommends tackling drink driving and reducing vehicle speeds. In reality, tackling this issue requires all of these. Although the reasons why the USA seems to be bucking the trend on pedestrian fatalities is a mystery for now.
Transport is a derived demand, remember
Its amazing how often we forget that. Sometimes, when we look to explain changes in travel habits, we look far too much at the transport reasons, and not enough at changes in wider lifestyles. Which is frustrating as there is often good data available on people’s lifestyles and how they have changed over time. And a new study from the US has given indications that changes may come from interesting places.
This analysis of the American Time Use Survey reveals the continued use of IT systems, video games, and a drop of in-person attendance at events is associated with a 25-30% reduction in time spent outside the home. Which consequently affects how much and how people travel. This seems to me to be something far more insightful than the commentary on any travel survey.
Random things
These links are meant to make you think about the things that affect our world in transport, and not just think about transport itself. I hope that you enjoy them.
Can Phoenix grow without groundwater? Only if the price is right. (Grist)
The Space Industry Is Taking Off. Space Law Is Still a Mystery. (New York Times)
Expanding professional networks catalyses female entrepreneurship (VoxDev)
So Many Questions, So Little Time for Pacific Logistics (RAND)
The role of supply and demand in the post-pandemic recovery in the euro area (European Central Bank)
Something interesting
Do trams make cities better? Many starry-eyed urbanist and transport planners will say yes every time, whereas everyone else says “yeah, probably, maybe.” This video does a decent job of the latter.
If you do nothing else today, then do this
Comedian and writer Ben Elton created a documentary on trains. Its less-than-complimentary about privatisation. You should watch it.