Authors

Juliet Solomon

Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

2006

Subject Area

Location - UK, Social Issues - Social exclusion, Social Issues - social inclusion, Transport accessibility - Access to services, Transport accessibility - Lack of access, Transport planning - Accessibility planning

Abstract

One of the principal rationales for accessibility planning in the UK is the reduction of transport-related social exclusion. This paper is concerned with an examination of the relevance of the indicators suggested by the UK's Department for Transport (DfT) in their Guidance on Accessibility Planning in Local Transport Plans (DfT 2005a). This paper reports on research that was undertaken as part of an EPSRC funded project - AUNT-SUE (Accessibility and User Needs in Transport for Sustainable Urban Environments). The paper starts with an in-depth analysis of the journey characteristics of those groups considered socially excluded by the Social Exclusion Unit (SEU 2003) and then considers the extent to which the indicators reflect the types and characteristics of journeys likely to be important to these groups. This analysis suggests that the DfT indicators are limited in scope and that a new approach to the definition of accessibility indicators is needed. This paper has been published with the permission of the author.