Transport reviews prize

The transport problems that urban centres now face (as regard congestion, the environment and public deficits) have led to an examination of competition in the sector. Some countries have moved towards the deregulation or privatization of urban public transport, influenced by developments in the theory of contestable markets. These analyses could potentially provide a means of increasing the efficiency of public services and, hence, public transport. However, the authors do not feel that they can deal with the full extent of the problem. Particularly in urban areas, there is a need nowadays to examine the issue of competition between the passenger car and public transport, especially from the pricing angle. In France, decades of policy strongly influenced by a preference for the car have prevented this problem from being a central concern for researchers and decision-makers. The approach to the problem has mainly been centred on increasing urban supply to meet demand better. However, a failure to consider pricing, and the subsidization phenomena that can occur as a result, affects the shape of supply systems. Pricing, through its action on demand, acts on supply by increasing or reducing its potential profitability. 'Snowball' effects can, therefore, mean that slight underpricing results in the domination of one transport mode. These effects have been revealed in particular by work in the new field of network economics. The example of the Lyon conurbation shall be used to illustrate the case, which is that car travel is underpriced. The basis of the exposé will be a detailed analysis of the externalities associated with the car, i.e. the costs of car use and the revenue it raises for the community. The second part of the paper is a study of several urban travel policies in Europe (France, UK, Switzerland, Italy) to show the 'effects' of this underpricing. Where supply has followed the pressure of demand, the dominance of the car has been reinforced. However, in cities, particularly in Switzerland, where supply has been restricted, this dominance has been considerably moderated. On the other hand, it can be seen from the French example that taking strong action to improve public transport is not in itself sufficient to increase usage. Several lessons can be learnt from this work. First, it is shown, if it was still necessary to do so, that the problems of urban travel require a comprehensive and coherent approach. Modal policy must, therefore, be assessed with reference to the entire transport system. Next, in connection with the issue of regulation, it is important to consider the issue of competition in urban areas, and not only competition between public transport operators, but also (and even above all) competition within the entire system of personal and public transport. Finally, with regard to pricing, the ratchet effects that benefit the car as a result of its underpricing in urban areas need to be studied.     

Transport reviews prize

This paper reviews the provision of public transport in the Cape Town Metropolitan Area and the proposals for its future development. A vitally distinguishing characteristic of public transport in Cape Town and other South African cities is the fractured market with great discrepancies between different segments. These range from those with high incomes and preferences similar to those found in typically First World countries to a great majority living at or below minimum poverty levels with virtually no choices and a very different set of needs and preferences. Although scope for improving service levels and satisfying user needs is unlimited, in South Africa resources for transport are facing severe competition from other macrolevel social and economic imperatives, such as combating crime and addressing discrepancies in health and education needs. This situation represents a huge challenge to those responsible for planning and developing public transport strategies. Evidence is presented that current public transport services are unsustainable in terms of increasing subsidy requirements while also not effectively meeting user needs. Proposals to restructure the public transport system and to use Stated Preference techniques to identify user needs are put forward. Given the fractured market for public transport in metropolitan Cape Town, Stated Preference techniques will require innovative adaptations and different approaches to those most commonly applied elsewhere in the world and this paper provides some broad guidelines.     

Book reviews

Practice, Politics and Policies—"The Politics of Transport”. By Enid Wistrich. (Harlow, Essex: Longman Group Limited, 1983.) [Pp. 185, with index.] £4·25.

Econometric Analysis and Railway Costing. By W. G. Waters, II and A. D. Woodland. (North Oxford Academic, 1984.) [Pp.132.] £12·95.     

Book reviews

EAST EUROPEAN TRANSPORT: REGIONS AND MODES, edited by B. Mieczkowski. The Hague, Martinus Nijhoff. (F85.00)

CONFLICT IN TRANSPORTATION, by H. M. Steiner, Lexington Mass: D. C. Heath and Lexington Books, 1978. 124 pp.     

Book reviews

Road haulage licensing and EC Transport Policy. By K. J. Button. (Aldershot: Gower Publishing Co., 1984.) [Pp.127.] £14.50.

Bicycles and Public Transportation: New Links to Suburban Transit Markets. By Michael A. Replogle. (Bicycle Federation, Washington DC, 1983.) [Pp. 171.] US$15.95.

Urban Transport in ASEAN. By V. Setty Pendakur. (Institute of Southeast Asian Studies — Research Notes and Discussions Papers Series No. 43, 1984.) [Pp. 65] $4.50 ISBN 9971–902–67–2.

The World Railway System. By Bernard de Fontgalland (Cambridge Univerisity Press, 1984.) [Pp. 209.] £16.00.     

Book reviews

Improving Railway Financial Performance. By M. E. Beesley and P. B. Kettle. (Aldershot: Gower, 1985.) [Pp. 108.] £15–00.     

Book reviews

THE SEVENTH AUSTRALIAN TRANSPORT RESEARCH FORUM, by K. W. Ogden.

AIRLINE PLANNING: CORPORATE, FINANCIAL AND MARKETING by Nawal K. Taneja. Lexington, Mass., Lexington Books, 1982. 207 pp. (£19.50)

SOLVING LOCAL GOVERNMENT PROBLEMS: PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF OPERATIONS RESEARCH IN CITIES AND REGIONS, by Charles E. Pinkus and Anne Dixson. George Allen and Unwin, London, 1981. (Hardback £20.00; paperback £8.95)

SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT OF TRANSPORT SYSTEMS, edited by N. K. Jaismal. Published by North‐Holland Publishing Company (U.S. $58.50)

TRANSPORTATION AND TRAFFIC ENGINEERING HANDBOOK (Second Edition), edited by W. S. Homburger, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1982. Prentice Hall, pp. 883.

ECONOMICS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT, by C. A. Nash. Longman, London, pp. 194. (£6.95).     

Book reviews

THE U.S. AIRFREIGHT INDUSTRY, by Nawal K. Taneja. Lexington Books, Lexington, Mass., 1979. 244 pp.

TRAFFIC, OPERATIONAL RESEARCH, FUTUROLOGY, by Arne Jensen. North Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1980. 321 pp. ($39.00)

PROBLEMS OF THE CARLESS, by R. E. Paaswell and W. W. Recker. Praeger Publishers, New York, 1978. 190 pp.

TRANSPORTATION AND THE ELDERLY, by Martin Wachs. University of California Press, Berkeley, 1980.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION: PLANNING, OPERATIONS AND MANAGEMENT, edited by George E. Gray and Lester A Hoel. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1979. 749 pp.

ETHYL ALCOHOL PRODUCTION AND USE AS A MOTOR FUEL, edited by J. K. Paul. Noyes Data Corporation, New Jersy, 1979. 354 pp ($48.00).

URBAN PLANNING AND PUBLIC TRANSPORT, edited by Roy Cresswell. The Construction Press, London, 1980. 172 pp. (£15.00)