The Social Cost of Automobility, Cycling and Walking in the European Union

Gößling, Stefan; Choi, Andy S.; Dekker, Kaely; Metzler, Daniel

doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.12.016

Cited by 143 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…A second major question relates to the incremental costs of these route detours. Motorized transport causes significant negative externalities, including costs that are imposed on users of other modes [8,14]. Although not necessarily representative of all cyclists, this study indicates that, even among experienced bicyclists, motor vehicle exhaust imposes €0.24 per km cycled, a significant cost compared with other transportation impacts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

“…As a decision-making tool, CBA has various weaknesses, such as the choice of parameters included in assessments, or the limited availability of data on included items (for discussion see e.g., [38][39][40][41]. CBA often focuses on one transport mode, and so it often overlooks impacts on other modes [8,42]. Hence, CBA will often consider the benefits of roadway improvements but overlook negative impacts that wider roads and more motor vehicle travel have on active modes, and since most public transit trips include walking and bicycling links, resulting in reductions in public transit access.…”

Section: The Cost Of Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Handbook recommends the inclusion of various externalities in all transport CBA, such as climate change, air pollution, noise pollution, vehicle operation, travel time, and injuries. This list is not comprehensive, and it omits some costs that motorized transportation imposes on other road users, such as traffic risks, congestion, health impacts, or discomfort [8]. More comprehensive CBA frameworks, such as those that are presented by the Victoria Transportation Policy Institute [4], include as many as 20 different economic impacts [8].…”

Section: The Cost Of Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, numerous studies have quantified and monetized (measured in monetary values) the costs of traffic congestion and the benefits of roadway expansions that could reduce congestion delays, but these studies generally ignore the barrier effect, that is, the additional disincentives and delays that wider roads and increased vehicle traffic impose on pedestrians and bicyclists. This omission exaggerates the predicted value of roadway expansion and underestimates the potential benefits of alternative congestion reduction strategies such as public transit service improvements and congestion pricing [8]. This suggests that, for more comprehensive and equitable planning, transportation practitioners (planners, economists, and policy analysts) need information to quantify and monetize the incremental delay and costs that motorized transport imposes on active modes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Effects of Perceived Traffic Risks, Noise, and Exhaust Smells on Bicyclist Behaviour: An Economic Evaluation

et al. 2019

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Active mode (walking, bicycling, and their variants) users are exposed to various negative externalities from motor vehicle traffic, including injury risks, noise, and air pollutants. This directly harms the users of these modes and discourages their use, creating a self-reinforcing cycle of less active travel, more motorized travel, and more harmful effects. These impacts are widely recognized but seldom quantified. This study evaluates these impacts and their consequences by measuring the additional distances that bicyclists travel in order to avoid roads with heavy motor vehicle traffic, based on a sample of German-Austrian bicycle organization members (n = 491), and monetizes the incremental costs. The results indicate that survey respondents cycle an average 6.4% longer distances to avoid traffic impacts, including injury risks, air, and noise pollution. Using standard monetization methods, these detours are estimated to impose private costs of at least €0.24/cycle-km, plus increased external costs when travellers shift from non-motorized to motorized modes. Conventional transport planning tends to overlook these impacts, resulting in overinvestment in roadway expansions and underinvestments in other types of transport improvements, including sidewalks, crosswalks, bikelanes, paths, traffic calming, and speed reductions. These insights should have importance for transport planning and economics.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Section: The Cost Of Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Cost Of Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Effects of Perceived Traffic Risks, Noise, and Exhaust Smells on Bicyclist Behaviour: An Economic Evaluation

et al. 2019

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“…For example, most cities and their planning processes turned car-centric in the 20th century [39]. To undo this massive damage to urban livability (and the global climate), more and more cities are starting to take note of the principles of transport justice [40], refocusing on walkability [41] and sustainable transport such as cycling [42], creating economic benefits for society as a whole [43]. To combat the political inertia countering such efforts and to plan in a sustainable way, urban planning stakeholders must become more aware of internal biases like elite projection [44] and of the system dynamics of path-dependence [45].…”

Section: Urban Planning For Humans Not For Technological or Entreprementioning

confidence: 99%

Human-Centric Data Science for Urban Studies

Resch

Szell

2019

IJGI

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Due to the wide-spread use of disruptive digital technologies like mobile phones, cities have transitioned from data-scarce to data-rich environments. As a result, the field of geoinformatics is being reshaped and challenged to develop adequate data-driven methods. At the same time, the term "smart city" is increasingly being applied in urban planning, reflecting the aims of different stakeholders to create value out of the new data sets. However, many smart city research initiatives are promoting techno-positivistic approaches which do not account enough for the citizens' needs. In this paper, we review the state of quantitative urban studies under this new perspective, and critically discuss the development of smart city programs. We conclude with a call for a new anti-disciplinary, human-centric urban data science, and a well-reflected use of technology and data collection in smart city planning. Finally, we introduce the papers of this special issue which focus on providing a more human-centric view on data-driven urban studies, spanning topics from cycling and wellbeing, to mobility and land use.

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Active travel infrastructure design and implementation: Insights from behavioral science

Timmons,

Andersson,

McGowan

et al. 2024

WIREs Climate Change

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Replacing car travel with walking and cycling is at the core of the shift to healthier and more sustainable societies. Implementing dedicated infrastructure is a common measure to achieve this aim. But policymakers in multiple countries regularly contend with two obstacles: designing infrastructure that people will make use of and securing public support for implementation. We review and synthesize relevant research from behavioral science that sheds light on how to overcome these two obstacles. Given available literature, we focus on cycling infrastructure. We find that research on moderators of the success of active travel initiatives points to the importance of proximity, connectivity, and safety perceptions, particularly among women, older adults and children. We review empirical findings on which design elements make infrastructure both safe to use and perceived as safe. With respect to public support, we summarize common concerns and review research from behavioral economics and psychology that may help to counter misperceptions of the effects of active travel infrastructure. We also draw on evidence regarding support for climate policy and opinion formation more generally. The paper offers an evidence‐based guide for policymakers to design and implement active travel infrastructure, seen through the lens of behavioral science. It also highlights fruitful avenues for future research.This article is categorized under: Perceptions, Behavior, and Communication of Climate Change > Behavior Change and Responses The Carbon Economy and Climate Mitigation > Policies, Instruments, Lifestyles, Behavior Policy and Governance > Governing Climate Change in Communities, Cities, and Regions

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The Social Cost of Automobility, Cycling and Walking in the European Union

Cited by 143 publications

References 60 publications

Effects of Perceived Traffic Risks, Noise, and Exhaust Smells on Bicyclist Behaviour: An Economic Evaluation

Effects of Perceived Traffic Risks, Noise, and Exhaust Smells on Bicyclist Behaviour: An Economic Evaluation

Human-Centric Data Science for Urban Studies

Active travel infrastructure design and implementation: Insights from behavioral science

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