Articles

This paper explores the mental-models of Swedish planners in order to understand the extent to which they support the ideals of sustainable transport. Focussing on three critical challenges: forecast-led versus vision-led planning; tackling congestion; and, public acceptability; the findings, drawn from in-depth interviews, demonstrate mostly advanced thinking. However, implementation can be at odds with these mental models, highlighting important lessons for other cities. There is a disconnect between the objectives of reducing car use and the continuation of investments in increasing road capacity, and a difficulty in transitioning from forecast-led planning to back-casting. Political controversies and public acceptability for measures to decrease car use are an added challenge.

This article provides insight into how the governance system of megacities, as an assemblage of many different factors, can preemptively react to emerging shrinkage. This is a topic that is rarely addressed in the current literature. The article examines the suburban region of the Tokyo Megacity served by the Tsukuba Express. The region is studied both quantitatively and qualitatively using a mixed-methods approach, and the results are related to the governance system model as originally developed. The results suggest that shrinkage-preemptive governance involves a mix of pro-growth and shrinkage-adapting strategies, but that implementing such strategies through interpolicy and intermunicipal coordination is problematic in growing metropolitan suburbs. We suggest (1) the national government plays a role in interpolicy coordination and regional governance of shrinkage, (2) the formation of political consciousness around regional transit infrastructure to foster regional coordination, and (3) a regional effort to restructure regional socio-economic identities to mitigate dependence on Tokyo and enhance economic resilience. This study shows that governance system models can assist planners and policymakers in engaging with the complexity of post-growth urban challenges.

Interchange stations with their many connecting modes and lines are central for a high-quality public transport system. Bus access at the station needs to operate reliably and efficiently in order to prevent congestion and queues. To this end, a conceptual simulation model for evaluation of bus terminal operations is presented in this paper. It is based on discrete event simulation and able to describe the detailed movements and interactions that occur between vehicles at larger terminals. The model has a modular approach, where common spatial sections at terminals are represented by modules that can be easily combined into many different terminal layouts. An implementation of the model is presented and, as a first sensitivity test, applied in a numerical experiment representing Norrköping interchange station in Sweden. The results indicate that the model can be a useful tool in planning processes.

This licentiate thesis investigates the development of two aspects of smart mobility, driverless shuttles and Mobility as a Service (MaaS) in relation to public transport. Smart mobility has emerged as a term to describe and label a group of changes unfolding in the transport sector, such as the role out of automated vehicles, electrification, the spread of platforms and new types of shared services,as well as new concepts to integrate multiple forms of mobility, often referred to as Mobility as a Service (or MaaS). The aim of this thesis is to provide insights into the governance of smart mobility, and more specifically the ways in which public transport governance and planning is shaped or reshaped by these processes. I explore how pilot projects for MaaS and driverless shuttles are being implemented in a specific case in Barkarbystaden, in Järfälla municipality in the greater Stockholm region. Barkarbystaden is a site of large scale infrastructural and urban development. This broader development has influenced the emergence of a collaboration between the local municipality of Järfälla, Stockholm’s regional public transport authority (RPTA), and the private bus operator Nobina Sweden. The collaboration is based on developing public transport in tandem with new technologies and services. As part of this collaboration two pilot projects were launched, one for driverless shuttles as part of public transport, and one for MaaS. In this thesis I draw on the concept of the governance assemblage to explore the formation of the collaboration, and translation to discuss the framing and introduction of both driverless shuttles and MaaS. I specifically ask which roles, responsibilities, and links between the organisations involved and smart mobility shape and characterise the collaboration, as well as how relations take shape around MaaS and driverless shuttles. This case shows how the backdrop of urban and infrastructure development in Barkarbystaden plays a key role in shaping these developments and highlights the influence of existing roles and relationships within public transport planning. In this study the introduction of smart mobility is characterised by the relationship between the operator and RPTA. The way in which smart mobility takes shape with a clear link to the existing role and responsibilities of the bus operator suggests  the role of the private operator takes on a new meaning within public transport in relation to smart mobility. The aspects of smart mobility piloted in this case also have different implications and connections to public transport governance and planning. The pilot for driverless shuttles creates connections to established formal documents, roles and existing processes for public transport provision while MaaS re-orders roles between the RPTA and the operator in this case. This re-ordering of roles is part of the framing of the MaaS concept, and this case illustrates how this emerges in a specific context and the ways in which different actors relate to the concept, influencing how MaaS materializes in this setting. Altogether, this case highlights how different forms of smart mobility have different implications for public transport planning and governance and illustrates how the role of the operator gains new significance at the intersection of smart mobility and public transport.

The research has been part of three K2 research projects:

• Att återuppfinna kollektivtrafik i en framtid av Smart mobilitet: Roller, strategier och samverkan
• Energieffektivisering av smart mobilitet kräver styrmedel för delad mobilitet
• Att realisera ny mobilitet – en analys av samverkansprocesser som formar framtidens kollektivtrafik i städer

The paper investigates whether and how regional public transport plans in Sweden address issues of social justice. Drawing upon a theoretical and analytical framework based on Young’s concept of domination and using a critical discourse analysis conducted on regional transport plans in three Swedish regions (Skåne, Stockholm and Västra Götaland), we identify discourses potentially resulting from and reproducing domination dynamics. The analysis highlights the centrality of economic growth goals and the framing of public transport users as customers not involved in the decision-making processes, which contradicts the declared justice and sustainability aims of the plans.

The article is also connected to the research project Public Transport, Space-time Accessibility and Social Equity 

Property prices are known to be higher in places with high accessibility, such as in proximity to train stations and especially to commuter rail, than in places without this access. This study provides a better understanding of how regional accessibility, through the structure of railway networks, can influence local agglomeration economies by providing accessibility to large labor markets. Previous literature has shown a positive impact of proximity to railway stations on housing prices, and our study adds to the literature by analyzing the impact of network structure. We argue that public transport systems can support the benefits of city networks in line with Alonso’s concept of borrowed sizes (1973). Using network theory to measure accessibility provided by the network, we show that stations that provide accessibility to large labor markets across the region are perceived as more attractive by households. Cities in proximity to other cities are strengthened through their public transport links, which allow agglomeration benefits to be exploited by residents.

Increasing the attractiveness of public transport is a key issue in the endeavours towards more sustainable transport systems. While there is a lot of knowledge on what can be done to increase public transport patronage, there is a lack of empirically based research analysing how to do this in practice. Using a comparative case analysis of six regions in Sweden with the highest increase in passenger volumes for public transport between 2009 and 2015, this paper examines the prerequisites for increasing public transport patronage, with a focus on the governance conditions required to implement such measures. The empirical material consists of semi-structured interviews with public transport planners and strategy documents for the six regions. The findings show that all regions but one employed a similar approach and implemented measures aimed at concentrating resources to corridors where the potential demand was the greatest. Only one region chose a different approach by investing in services in both strong routes and in the peripheral network. However, regardless of approach, the results highlight that there is considerable coherence regarding the governance conditions that enable implementation. Three main conditions were identified, namely political support, well-functioning collaboration between organisations, and public support through citizen dialogue. The results support key findings on collaborative conditions from previous research, including the importance of joint objectives, trust between key individuals, and the need for long time frames in order to develop collaborative capacity.

As sales of e-bikes increase, so does the need for reliable evaluations of which means of transport the e-bike replaces, what we call the substitution effect. A randomised controlled trial with GPS data from 98 frequent drivers in Sweden was conducted to investigate the effect of the e-bike on modal choice, the number of trips, distance, as well as perceptions of the e-bike as a substitute for the car. The results demonstrate that the treatment group increased cycling on average with 1 trip and 6.5 km per day and person, which led to a 25% increase in total cycling. The whole increase was at the expense of car use, which on average decreased by 1 trip and 14 km per person and day, a decrease in car mileage of 37%. Implications for policy and further research are discussed.

There has been a rapid rise in papers modelling the impacts of autonomous vehicles. Drawing on a review of this literature, we analyse and discuss the messages conveyed by these studies from a policy-making perspective. An overview of the studies is provided to highlight the different policy frames. We consider the roles that modelling knowledge should have in policy-making in the context of unstable and uncertain futures where novel transport modes bring into question the use of past knowledge and assumptions. We conclude that both limitations of, and assumptions in, models need to be made more explicit and accessible when used in policy-making.

Removing bus stops is often a prerequisite for introducing faster, more reliable, and more frequent rail or coach services in rural areas. Despite the potentially higher quality of service through trains or coaches, however, the bus-stop removals often become stumbling blocks. It is sometimes feared that the alterations to the public transport network will pose a threat to the possibilities of living in rural areas outside villages. In this study, we investigate how travel by public transport is affected in areas where bus services are substantially reduced in connection with the introduction of rail services with fewer stops. Through an analysis of access trips from rural areas surrounding the train stations, we are able to study the development of public transport patronage in these areas in comparison with a control group with retained rural bus services. A total of 28 villages with surrounding rural areas in southern Sweden are included in the study. Our results reveal a significantly larger patronage increase around new train stations compared to areas where regional bus services are kept, and importantly, the patronage increase does not only occur in the immediate surroundings of the stations. Outside the villages, in the rural areas where public transport services have been cut, the increase is of equal magnitude. Hence, our results oppose the idea of distortion between the villages and their surrounding rural areas, at least in terms of net effect on public transport usage.