VIDEO: Innovative community transport webinar

Watch the video here of our latest webinar, co-presented with our partner ITS Australia, a panel discussion on the topic Delivering community transport that meets the diverse needs of our growing population.

The topic is borne of a recently completed iMOVE project, Innovative local transport: Community transport of the future, a project conducted with ITS Australia, Department of Transport (WA), Transport for NSW, Department of Transport and Main Roads (Queensland), Department of Transport Victoria, and the University of Technology Sydney. The final report on that project can be downloaded from Community transport: Defining the problems, fixing the future.

The speakers

• Stacey Ryan: Policy Manager, ITS Australia
• Peter Lee: Senior Manager, Institute for Public Policy and Governance, University of Technology Sydney
• Ben Whitehorn: CEO, Randwick Waverley Transport Community Group
• Simon Anthonisz: COO, Orcoda
• Lee-Ann Breger: Programs Director, iMOVE Australia

Discussion points

Several times during the webinar the point was raised that while Australia’s aged population is set to significantly grow in the next 20 years, issues around community transport are not something ahead of us, they are very much with us now.

All in the panel admitted that this area of transport is complex, and that while there has been a lot of research into transport disadvantage, that work has been theoretical. It has resulted in a piecemeal approach to policy, and a limited understanding of the costs and many benefits of community transport.

The final research report, said Ben Whitehorn, is “the most comprehensive and thorough piece of research on community transport.” The ways forward, be it policy, technology, collaboration, and more, are signposted in this research.

The ability to get around is key to any individual’s wellbeing as it enables them to access health services, to work and participate in leisure activities. In Australia, we have an increasingly ageing population, where 5% of the population has a severe disability of some kind, many of whom need support to get from A to B. We need to make sure that our community transport networks deliver this.

Lee-Ann Breger, Programs Director, iMOVE Australia

Other discussion points from the panel include:

• Key takeaways for those in community transport, in government, and technology providers
• Disproportionate impacts in regional and remote areas of Australia
• Evidence outlining the social value of the good provision of community transport
• The necessity of both sharing data, and privacy of that data
• The challenges of scale and opportunities for technology to assist
• Collaboration, collaboration, collaboration!

Webinar video

Click the play button below to catch up on what was discussed by the panel on this important transport topic.

Speakers’ slide decks

Peter Lee has made his presentation slides available. Click the button below to download.

Opportunities for Systemic and Service Level Innovation in Community Transport