Access not mobility

What is it about?

A number of ways for reducing the energy and climate change costs of transport have been proposed. Many of them rely on technical fixes--increased vehicle efficiency or shifting to alternate fuels. Here I argue for travel reductions, and further argue that we cannot hope to have reductions if the convenience of travel (chiefly its speed) is maintained at anywhere near present levels. Access (to workplaces, shops, schools etc), rather than mobility, should be the focus for transport planners.

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Why is it important?

This paper argues that the travel convenience of the car is the main reason why personal travel rose so much when the car replaced public transport.