Resilient and economically sustainable public transport
The project examines how the Swedish public transport system, particularly the railway, can be made more robust and resilient after a long period of underfunding.
The aim is to quantify and classify disruptions; assess the resilience of alternative network structures; measure and analyse the railway infrastructure’s “maintenance debt” and its causes; evaluate alternative financing models for maintenance and reinvestment; and develop strategies that balance resilience, capacity and cost-effectiveness under different financial conditions. Methodologically, the project combines econometric analysis of extensive operational data (Lupp, Ofelia, BIS, Bessy, official statistics and more) with theoretical and applied modelling based on the 4R resilience framework (robustness, redundancy, rapidity and resourcefulness).
Empirical results are combined with workshops involving industry representatives to produce a range of policy-relevant recommendations and strategies. The expected outcomes include improved understanding of trade-offs between capacity and resilience, new insights into financing mechanisms such as congestion charges and increased track access charges, as well as policy recommendations for a more resilient and economically sustainable public transport system.
Photo: Calle Eklund CC BY-SA 4.0 – creativecommons.org