ITS Monday: Edition 23, 2023

Why city centres are going car-free

Another article from New Zealand looking at what’s happening in cities there in terms of making their CBDs less car-centric. “Whether it’s getting rid of congestion, meeting emissions reduction goals, or simply making cities nicer to be in, councils think getting rid of cars is the answer. Where does the idea come from, and why is there so much resistance?”

Related iMOVE content: Traffic congestion: Info, project & resources

Paris to charge SUV drivers higher parking fees to tackle ‘auto-besity’

Meanwhile, Paris too is looking at changing the mix of vehicles in its city centre, but this plan has a more specific target – the SUV. “Details of the charges have not been announced but the size, weight of the vehicle and its motor will be taken into consideration. Electric vehicles and those with large families requiring a bigger car are expected to escape the increased fees that will come into effect on 1 January 2024.”

We need to do better at reporting and analysing public transport patronage

The latest from Chris Loader’s Charting Transport blog. “The most common, simple, and obvious way to report public transport patronage is monthly totals. Plenty of agencies do this, but I’m here to argue that invites bad analysis and false conclusions. We can and need to do better. Let me explain…”

Overcrowding on public transport increasing airborne disease risk: report

Staying on the topic of public transport, one lesson we should have learnt from the (ongoing) pandemic is the importance of ventilation. This report from New Zealand finds that ventilation on buses and trains is, well, poor.

Using multi-criteria performance measurement models to evaluate the financial, operational and environmental sustainability of airlines

A new academic paper with four authors, including the Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies‘ Rico Merkert. “Airline sustainability, defined as both decarbonization and long-term financial survival, has become critical especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our paper investigates the multi-dimensional effects of the COVID-19 crisis on airlines’ sustainability performance using data from 56 airlines for the period before, during and early after the pandemic (2017–2021).”

Related iMOVE projects: Experiments on consumer preferences for sustainable airlines

Why electric cars are already almost cheaper than petrol peers

Analyses of a few recently published reports on looking at the true running costs of electric and ICE vehicles. “Price parity with petrol and diesel vehicles could be less than four years away, a study shows, and potential fuel and maintenance savings means some owners are already cutting their transport costs “from day one”.”

Related iMOVE article: Electric vehicles: Supporting uptake, investigating smart charging

The construction industry is switching to electric equipment – here’s why

“From demolition and mining to aerial lift and industrial work, electric construction equipment is actually already being used in the building industry. And as EVs continue to be rapidly adopted overall, electric equipment will be the construction industry’s preferred choice in the near future.”

Paris City Hall aims for 100 green school streets by 2026

Paris; second appearance this week, this time in the realm of movement and place. “The Paris City Hall has set itself the goal of creating one hundred “school streets” closed to traffic and vegetated by 2026 and the end of Anne Hidalgo’s second term, among 300 partially or completely pedestrianized streets.”

Related iMOVE project: Your Street, Your Say: Better streets for Darebin