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Towards a “Social Welfare” Approach to Transport

This chapter describes how the author suggested in her introduction that a significant proportion of people living on low incomes in both the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US) are effectively “locked-out” of the activities that enable a decent quality of life because of a lack of adequate public transport. The statistical evidence shows that people living on the lowest incomes in the UK and the US spend a far greater proportion of their income to travel less often and over shorter distances than the average population. They also disproportionately suffer the disutility of the car-dominant transport systems. This is not only in terms of their over-exposure to noise, air pollution and accidents, but because of diminishing and increasing unaffordable public transport services combined with a decline in local shops and amenities in the areas where they live. The effect of this “travel poverty” is to significantly reduce their life chances because of a reduced opportunity to access a decent education, gainful employment, healthcare services and other amenities. The inequalities that are already evident within this sector of the population are reinforced in this way. In the past, transport policies have been blind to such issues because the theories and models were more concerned with the efficient operation and maintenance of the system than meeting the accessibility needs of the people using it. Similarly, professionals concerning themselves with the anti-poverty and social welfare agenda have failed to recognize and address the important and dynamic role of transportation in creating and reinforcing social and economic disadvantage. This situation is now changing on both sides of the Atlantic; new policy and legislative frameworks are being developed in both countries in an attempt to address the previous oversight. The chapter shows how, clearly, the US policy and practice is more advanced in this respect and the UK policy makers and practitioners have much to learn from the experiences of their US counterparts. Nevertheless, US practitioners would be the first to admit that they are a long way from resolving the problems that they have clearly identified and that the issue is complex and often throws up more questions than satisfactory answers.

  • Availability:
  • Corporate Authors:

    Policy Press

    University of Bristol, 4th Floor, Beacon House, Queen's Road
    Bristol,   United Kingdom  BS8 1QU
  • Authors:
    • Lucas, Karen
  • Publication Date: 2004

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Print
  • Pagination: pp 291-298
  • Monograph Title: Running on Empty. Transport, Social Exclusion and Environmental Justice

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01033189
  • Record Type: Publication
  • ISBN: 1861345690
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Sep 26 2006 4:23PM