Overview
The major environmental problems caused by road traffic relate to disturbance by noise and air pollution. As a consequence of this, the need of shifting the modal split from car to modes of transport more environmentally friendly, like the use of bicycles, public transport and improved pedestrian areas, has become a central aim of research. Strategies of urban transport pricing can help to achieve optimum modal split in urban areas.
TRANSPRICE aims at addressing the issue of integrated trans-modal urban transport pricing towards achieving optimum modal split in urban areas at Pan-European level. The project involves analysis and evaluation for urban sites throughout Europe, covering a wide range of cities.
The project will involve:
- Investigation of technical and financial options for integrated trans-modal pricing in urban areas and their potential acceptability by the public and politicians. This will include: congestion charging, multi-travel payment cards, road pricing revenue allocation issues, as well as legal and institutional constraints.
- Analysis of pricing strategies, tariffs and generalised cost structures, including journey times, by mode of transport, in conjunction with the current modal split. The project will also ascertain the determinants of mode choice, in terms of transport pricing and the setting up of a common analytical framework for several alternative trans-modal pricing and integrated payment scenarios.
- Analysis of potential user response and road traffic operational/socio-economic/financial/behavioural/land use/environmental and energy effects of several demand management and mode choice-related pricing measures.
- Evaluation of trans-modal pricing and payment scenarios and actions.
- Dissemination of project results, including dissemination to Central and Eastern Europe.
Funding
Results
User surveys in eight cities showed that public acceptability of isolated pricing measures is low. This can increase substantially when pricing is presented as the cornerstone of a package of measures that include revenue allocation to public transport investments and non-motorised modes. Hypothecation of road-use pricing revenues is also becoming more acceptable to politicians.
Demonstrations and modelling work in five cities showed that road-use pricing is an effective way of changing modal split from private car to public transport and Park & Ride, giving city centre traffic reductions of 5 - 25% (for charge levels of 1 - 3 EUR). Cordon pricing is particularly effective when applied to congested central areas and over peak periods (reducing car trips by up to 25%). Pricing of parking is also effective in restraining car trips, provided enforcement can be maximised. It works best as an accompanying measure rather than in isolation.
Integrated ticketing and smartcard integrated payment systems have a small impact on modal split on their own (especially for Park & Ride), but more importantly support trans-modal pricing measures. Pricing of High Occupancy Vehicle lanes has a marginal impact on modal split, and seems applicable in special cases only (such as severe congestion). Various forms of road-use pricing were assessed to be the most promising approach, followed by cordon pricing, in a multi-criteria evaluation across a range of policy objectives.
Policy implications
Transport pricing has potential for yielding significant changes in urban modal split towards public transport, Park & Ride and non-motorised modes, as well as providing substantial revenues.
TRANSPRICE concluded that road use pricing should be considered when parking pricing measures alone have been found to have exhausted their effectiveness. Road-use pricing should be promoted as part of a package of demand management measures, with hypothecation of revenues towards local transport and environmental improvements. This would substantially increase the potential public acceptability, as well as helping to overcome the resource problems that face demand management investments.