Public attitudes to transport: interpreting the evidence

Abstract

Public attitudes to transport are complex. This paper summarises selected themes from a large scale evidence review of over 300 studies, with a focus on attitudes to important (and sometimes controversial) aspects of transport policy, namely assessment of the importance of congestion, relative popularity of different policy interventions, expanding provision for international air transport and environmental improvement. Findings include: (1) evidence of majority attitudes that traffic congestion is seen as a national problem but less so for individual respondents and their families; (2) evidence of large majority (but not unanimous) support for improvements to public transport, reductions in speed and restrictions on traffic in residential areas, while road building and road pricing are divisive and controversial; (3) recent deep inconsistencies in evidence cited on attitudes to providing for growth in air transport; and (4) evidence of a gradation of willingness to change behaviour for environmental reasons. A critical evidence gap is on changes in individual attitudes over time, essential for understanding how attitudes form, and for their assessment in informing policy formulation.