Overview
The general trend within travel behaviour is that the proportion of car trips and the distance travelled per person is increasing. At the same time there has been a modal shift from sea and rail freight over to road freight. In total this leads to more road transport which again has environmental consequences such as emissions, noise and deterioration of urban areas.
St.meld. nr. 46, The Norwegian Transport Plan [white paper], focuses on this problem area and sets as its goal to '. . .better environment and health quality of urban areas, reduce the rate of accidents and improve the conditions for public transport and trade. This must be achieved by a combination of means and initiatives contributing to lower the increase in private motoring and encourage the use of bikes and public transport.'
Relevant knowledge on the field exists already, both nationally and internationally. The challenge is to apply it. There is also a lack of empirical data material about specific initiatives, needed to compare the effects of an initiative applied in different places, and to study the interaction and effect of two or more initiatives combined.
The aim of the City Transport programme is to improve professional expertise in the field, and attaches importance to the communication of knowledge to politicians and the public. This knowledge will improve the decision basis in transport related questions. It will also contribute to better the health- and environment quality in urban areas and limit the increase in private motoring, by encouraging cycling and the use of public transport.
The City Transport programme was started in 2002, but most of the projects have only just commenced. The programme is divided between the three following sub-programmes:
1) 'Improved environment efficiency in transporting' (7 projects)
2) 'Man- and company adjusted initiatives' (3 projects)
3) 'City designing and city life' (7 projects)
Funding
N/A