scholarly journals Encouraging the Sustainable Adoption of Autonomous Vehicles for Public Transport in Belgium: Citizen Acceptance, Business Models, and Policy Aspects

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 921
Author(s):  
Pol Camps-Aragó ◽  
Laura Temmerman ◽  
Wim Vanobberghen ◽  
Simon Delaere

Several mobility-related issues persist in and around urban areas. Autonomous vehicles promise substantial environmental, safety, and economic benefits but may also cause unintended adverse effects that stem from single-passenger mobility becoming more affordable and accessible. While using them for public transport (i.e., autonomous shuttles) can help avoid such downsides, there are many challenges to their adoption, particularly ones that are related to citizen acceptance and economic aspects. Based on a novel survey of Brussels’ citizens, we provide insights from user opinions on last-mile autonomous shuttle services and analyze the effect of various attitudinal and socio-demographic factors affecting such acceptance. Our respondents exhibit an overall positive acceptance albeit with a limited willingness to pay for it. In addition, based on expert interviews, we provide a discussion on appropriate business models and policy recommendations to help ensure the timely adoption of AVs in Belgium that adapts to mobility needs and policy goals.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1962
Author(s):  
Timo Liljamo ◽  
Heikki Liimatainen ◽  
Markus Pöllänen ◽  
Riku Viri

Car ownership is one of the key factors affecting travel behaviour and thus also essential in terms of sustainable mobility. This study examines car ownership and how people’s willingness to own a car may change in the future, when considering the effects of public transport, Mobility as a Service (MaaS) and automated vehicles (AVs). Results of two citizen surveys conducted with representative samples (NAV-survey = 2036; NMaaS-survey = 1176) of Finns aged 18–64 are presented. The results show that 39% of respondents would not want or need to own a car if public transport connections were good enough, 58% if the described mobility service was available and 65% if all vehicles in traffic were automated. Hence, car ownership can decrease as a result of the implementation of AVs and MaaS, and higher public transport quality of service. Current mobility behaviour has a strong correlation to car ownership, as respondents who use public transport frequently feel less of a will or need to own a car than others. Generally, women and younger people feel less of a will or need to own a car, but factors such as educational level and residential location seem to have a relatively low effect.


2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-13
Author(s):  
Jelena Simićević ◽  
Vladimir Molan ◽  
Nada Milosavljević

Sustainable parking management in central urban areas typically involves implementation of restrictive parking measures. Discouraged by parking measures users seek for an alternative option. Some of them self-initiatively found a way not to completely abandon driving: they drive and park outside the central area and reach the final destination by public transport. This travel pattern is known as “informal Park-and-Ride“ (PnR), and should be estimated as relatively positive because the critical “last mile” is travelled by public transport. As PnR demand grows, policy-makers should consider its formalisation and integration into the urban transport policy. This paper aims to identify informal PnR users in Belgrade and to investigate their motives, requests and preferences towards this option. The findings should be of importance when planning and developing formal PnR sites, which can largely increase user willingness to accept restrictive parking measures, i.e. to adopt more sustainable travel behaviour.


2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 197-208
Author(s):  
Łukasz Muślewski ◽  
Piotr Bojar ◽  
Łukasz Muciok ◽  
Michał Lewalski

Abstract In a situation of increasing the supply of means of individual transport and not capable of following the development of infrastructure, an important issue is the issue of ensuring adequate levels of efficiency, safety and the competitiveness of the operation of the exploitation of public transport services. Factors affecting the safe operation pending exploitation systems of vehicles, in a differentiated way affect the level of safety provided services in smaller cities - up to 100 thousand inhabitants, with respect to the cities which are agglomerations of more complex structure, which are cities the number to 500 thousand inhabitants. This paper attempts to analyze and evaluate the safety of the operation of the public transport services exploitation, on the basis of the same assessment criteria, comparing two different sized urban areas.


Significance China and the United States, the world's two largest car markets, are both pursuing leadership in developing autonomous vehicles and the much-touted transformation such transport will bring -- 'social mobility services'. Impacts Governments could save on road traffic infrastructure as a result of self-driving vehicles optimising existing road capacity. On-demand shared transport services will increasingly replace scheduled public transport. Multi-modal medium-distance on-demand public transport will develop, challenging the business models of airlines and railways. Harm-minimisation programming poses ethical and liability issues for driverless vehicle manufacturers, operators and owners.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jody Muelaner ◽  

Sustainable first/last/only-mile (FLO-mile) transport is the key to sustainable travel. It could directly replace private car use for short urban journeys, which account for 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions. More importantly, it could enable public transport to be used for longer journeys, which account for 6% of emissions. Active travel, such as walking and cycling, has the lowest emissions and provides huge economic benefits that pay for the required infrastructure many times over. Unsettled Issues Regarding First- and Last-Mile Transport discusses the mass switch to more sustainable modes of transport and how to increase their perceived value to users. It also covers the prioritization of publicly owned cycles over rideshare options due to the latter’s higher lifecycle emissions, including manufacture, redistribution, and service operations and station construction.


2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-76
Author(s):  
Esraa Jamal ◽  
David Scott ◽  
Ahmed Idris ◽  
Gordon Lovegrove

Abstract This paper reports on the social, cultural, and demographic factors affecting Kuwaiti commuters. The objectives were to 1) investigate the awareness of Kuwaitis of transportation problems, 2) examine the perceptions of Kuwaitis of daily traffic congestion and how it affects them emotionally and physically, and the main objective 3) study the attitudes of Kuwaitis towards using public buses. An online survey was used to examine these factors, and a sample of five hundred transportation system users was obtained. The primary findings showed significant associations between the use of public transport buses and the user’s nationality, gender, age, education, and income level. Men are 2.6 times more likely to use buses, and non-Kuwaiti residents are 6.4 times more likely to use them. In relation to the perceptions of daily traffic congestion, findings indicate that with increase in travel time, commuters, in general, developed more negative feelings, such as exhaustion and stress. A large proportion of the sample population is aware of current local transportation problems and future transportation projects. The results of this study fill a gap in the knowledge of the socioeconomic and cultural factors that influence the success of sustainable public transportation solutions to the traffic challenges found in Kuwait. This knowledge is also crucial to foreign consultants working on planning and transportation projects in the region. It is recommended that officials use this new knowledge on cultural factors to develop integrated land use and transportation plans of the urban areas in Kuwait and to develop more effective and sustainable transportation demand management policies in support of UN Sustainable Development Goals that Kuwait has signed up to pursue.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Fabian Edel ◽  
Simon Wassmer ◽  
Mira Kern

The mobility needs of society are constantly increasing, resulting in congested urban areas. New mobility concepts such as e-scooters can help to reduce traffic. In particular, commuting paths, which generally remain within a specific distance, are short and manageable via an intermodal travel chain. In combination with public transport, commuting paths could be beneficial. To evaluate the potential of e-scooters used with commuting paths, a literature research focusing on mobility behavior and characteristics was conducted. In addition, an end-user survey was used to identify the ecological and economical potential for typical work routes. The research results indicate that both the mobility preferences of the users, e.g., acceptance of intermodal travel, and the technical specification of e-scooters, e.g., speed and range, meet the needs of commuting. The assessment of typical work routes shows that the use of e-scooters for the first and last mile, in combination with public transport, is highly beneficial. Furthermore, e-scooters have the potential to provide individual advantages in the areas of travel time and costs. From an ecological perspective, CO2-equivalent emissions may also be reduced for some users depending on the substituted modes.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong-ping Guan ◽  
Wen Zhao ◽  
Shen-gang Li ◽  
Guo-bin Zhang

The design and construction of shallow-buried tunnels in densely populated urban areas involve many challenges. The ground movements induced by tunneling effects pose potential risks to infrastructure such as surface buildings, pipelines, and roads. In this paper, a case study of the Zhongjie subway station located in Shenyang, China, is examined to investigate the key construction techniques and the influence of the Pile-Beam-Arch (PBA) excavation method on the surrounding environment. This case study discusses the primary risk factors affecting the environmental safety and summarizes the corresponding risk mitigation measures and key techniques for subway station construction using the PBA excavation method in a densely populated urban area.


Folia Medica ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 566-571
Author(s):  
Eirini Tsanidou ◽  
Vasiliki Gougoula ◽  
Athanasios Tselebonis ◽  
Christos Kontogiorgis ◽  
Theodoros C. Constantinidis ◽  
...  

Background: Breastfeeding is not only important for the bond between the mother and the child but is also associated with many health benefits. Socio-demographic factors have been found to be important for the initiation and longer duration of breastfeeding.&nbsp; Aim: To record the breastfeeding characteristics and to explore possible associations with socio-cultural and demographic factors in a culturally diverse area in Greece. Materials and methods: A questionnaire including information about breastfeeding characteristics, medical history and demographics was completed by parents of children in the primary schools of the area. Results: The study included 700 school-age children (352 boys), mean age 9.4&plusmn;1.9 years. Breastfeeding was reported in 54.9% of them, with median (IQR) duration of 120 (range 60-360) days. Prevalence of breastfeeding was slightly higher in semi-urban areas, versus rural or urban settlements, but the duration there was significantly lower (p<0.001). Better educated mothers tended to initiate or sustain breastfeeding for a longer period; however, this difference was not statistically significant. Children of the native Muslim minority had been breastfed for a longer time (median duration 360 vs. 120 days, p<0.001), however, no difference was noted in prevalence. Conclusion: Prevalence of breastfeeding in Greece is approximately 55%, similar to previous reports and along with duration is determined by certain socio-cultural factors.


Author(s):  
Tue Nguyen Dang

This research examines the factors affecting the financial literacy of Vietnamese adults. Using a sample of 266 observations of adults in 2 big cities in Vietnam (Hanoi and Vinh in Nghe An Province), the author evaluates the literacy level of adults in these urban areas. The financial literacy of the interviewed people is low. The multiple regression results show that lower financial literacy levels associate with higher age and married status and higher financial literacy levels associate with higher education, more family members, the person making financial decisions and the person attending a useful financial course. This research also explores the association between financial literacy and financial behaviors of individuals employing logistic models. It is found that higher financial literacy associates with less probability of overspending and higher probability of saving money and careful spending. Higher financial literacy is also found to associate with higher probability of opening a savings account and making various investments. 


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