Project
Early assessment of trends in transportation planning and road construction (SVI 2000/378)
Funding origin:
Switzerland
STRIA Roadmaps:
Transport infrastructure (INF)
Transport mode:
Multimodal
Transport sectors:
Passenger transport
Freight transport
Project website:
Duration:
Start date: 01/01/2004,
End date: 01/12/2006
Status: Finished
Funding details:
Overview
Background & policy context:
The time required for the planning and realisation of road infrastructure projects has
been on the rise for some time. This is due to the marked acceleration of social change
as well as the increasing complexity of political processes. Planning processes have to
take into account new social needs emerging at increasingly short intervals. As a result,
the lifespan of the road infrastructure regarding operation, equipment and design is
increasingly often artificially cut short, which can easily lead to cost-intensive adjust-
ments even for relatively new facilities.
Objectives:
Against this background, this research project pursues the following goals:
- First, it aims at providing systematic support for the stakeholders involved in order for them to recognise pertinent social developments. What is at issue is not the expected developments per se, but the ability to recognise new developments in general.
- Second and beyond that, this study aims at presenting state-of-the-art research on traffic-related social developments expected to occur in the future.
Methodology:
These goals will be achieved by following steps:
- Step one: In an effort to provide a conceptual foundation, the general findings of current innovation research and historical science will be presented as they contribute to explaining traffic-related social developments.
- Step two: The most pertinent social developments will be elaborated in the context of the current literature, whereupon the developments’ effects on traffic and traffic planning will be discussed.
- Step three: Four case studies will be conducted to provide an in-depth look at the way development trends are responded to today.
- Step four: The intermediate results obtained up to this point will be examined and tested by means of an expert focus group in terms of the results’ practical relevance. The most useful form of communicating the research results will then be discussed with practitioners.
- Step five: Finally, by way of synthesising the various research results, recommendations will be formulated addressing how the different stakeholders may respond to development trends in practice.
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