Evaluating the long term impacts of transport policy: An initial assessment of bus deregulation

Local buses in Britain, outside London, were ‘deregulated’ as a result of the 1985 Transport Act, with most of the organisational changes implemented in 1986 but many of the ownership changes occurring over a longer period. By contrast, in London, the 1984 London Regional Transport Act introduced a system of comprehensive tendering – but it took 10 years for the organisational and ownership changes to be fully implemented. This paper examines the long term impacts of these changes. A key issue when examining long term changes is that of the counterfactual – what would have happened if the changes had not occurred? An econometric model of the demand for local bus services in Britain is outlined and used in conjunction with extrapolative methods for key variables such as fares and bus kms to determine demand-side counterfactuals. Some analyses of subsidy and of costs will also be outlined. This will then permit the examination of welfare change by estimating changes in consumer and producer surpluses, updating earlier studies. It is found that outside London, bus demand declined strongly, at least up to the year 2000 and some of this reduction can be ascribed to deregulation. By contrast in London, demand has generally been increasing. However, in both areas operating costs also declined strongly, again up to 2000, but since then there have been strong increases in costs and subsidy. Our initial finding is that there are net welfare increases both outside and inside London, but with welfare increases per capita being five times greater in London than elsewhere. However, sensitivity analysis shows that our results are sensitive to the specification of the modelling system and assumptions made concerning the counterfactual, particularly for the results for London.     

Overview of public transport policy developments in South Africa

In South Africa, a restructuring of the public transport system is currently under way. In the bus industry the tender for contract system is being implemented, the commuter rail sector is being recapitalised and the minibus taxi industry recapitalization programme is in its early stages. Progress with policy implementation across the modes of transport, modal split trends and issues that hamper the full development of the public transport industry are discussed in this paper. Medium to long term policy and strategy initiatives that will further inform the development of the industry are also highlighted in this chapter.     

面向规划的城市公交运营规模指标体系探析

从公交可持续发展的角度,对众多公交运营技术指标进行梳理,筛选出与规划直接相关的能够体现公交运营规模的关键指标,建立面向规划的公交运营规模指标体系,并运用层次分析法对指标体系的各关键指标进行定量评价,计算出各指标的相应权重,为城市公交规划及其行动计划的制定提供抉择依据。     

Engaging the paratransit sector in Cape Town on public transport reform: Progress,process and risks

The South African government in 2006 initiated an urban public transport reform programme reliant on the introduction of new bus rapid transit (BRT) systems. Affected paratransit operators can opt to be incorporated in these systems by forming new operating companies, but must withdraw their existing services from proposed routes. Cape Town's first phase of BRT operations came online in 2011, and operator engagement has focussed on this phase. The attitudes within this city's paratransit sector in relation to future phases, and to the broader reform policy, remain largely untested. In view of this sector's past resistance to government-led proposals, and the current phase avoiding areas with the highest concentrations of operators, the current engagement process's outcomes may not be adequate indicators of future prospects.     

Regulating the regulator: The impact of professional procuring bodies on local public transport policy and its effectiveness

During the past 15 years competitive tenders have become a common procedure when procuring local bus services in Europe. In particular, tenders with gross cost contracts and the so-called Scandinavian model have gained popularity, resulting in a vast amount of research on optimal contractual relationships between government and operators. This paper pays attention to a rather neglected part of the Scandinavian model: the construction of professional procuring bodies and their relationship to the local public administration, focusing on its implications for policy steering and service performance.The paper outlines briefly two different perspectives of analyses of organisational models: one perspective is anchored in principal-agent theory and institutional economics; and the other perspective in political science. Empirically, the article is based on an evaluation of the relation between two Norwegian counties and the administrative company responsible for planning and procuring public transport services. This evaluation indicates, firstly, important common challenges for the county administration due to lack of regional administrative competencies in relation to the administrative company, which also hampers the county’s role as coordinator of policy areas of importance for public transport. Secondly, due to increased transaction costs, the establishment of administrative companies does not seem compatible with contracts relying on net cost solutions with huge scope for operator initiatives.     

The impact of the application of new technology on public transport service provision and the passenger experience: A focus on implementation in Australia

The emergence of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) has been recognised with many initiatives during the last 20 years. In Europe, the “ITS Action Plan” identifies a number of applications as key elements contributing to the efficient co-ordination of the overall transport chain. The context and experience surrounding the recent widespread development of technological tools and ICT platforms to support the emergence of ITS are notable for the way in which they permeate the transport and logistics chain. But a key question remains: to what extent is the public transport sector able to exploit the wider benefits of ITS?     

Engaging paratransit on public transport reform initiatives in South Africa: A critique of policy and an investigation of appropriate engagement approaches

A number of South African cities are planning integrated public transport networks that rely on the introduction of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), in line with similar trends to expand or upgrade public transport services in emerging and industrialised urban transport markets around the globe. In addition, BRT in South Africa is being used as a mechanism to drive reform in the dominant yet highly fragmented paratransit sector, inspired by similar processes particularly in Latin American cities such as Bogotá, Mexico City, and Santiago de Chile. Thousands of paratransit operators would have to formalise their businesses, or merge into new or existing operator entities in order to participate in the new systems. There is, however, an absence of accessible business plans and regulatory regime proposals around which paratransit can be engaged to convince it to alter its current modus operandi. A large number of national, regional and local paratransit groupings have furthermore indicated their resistance to the planned networks on the grounds of insufficient consultation, an unclear future role in the system and employee redundancies. Should this deadlock not be resolved, it seems unlikely that the planned networks will be realised in the proposed timeframes, if indeed at all. This paper investigates the South African passenger transport policy framework that has contributed to the current deadlock, and explores appropriate approaches to engaging paratransit operators on a system of contracting, competition and ownership that recognises the sector’s aspirations and fragmented nature, yet contributes towards improved passenger transport services. It is the authors’ view that paratransit reform is a highly context-specific process, even at the sub-city level, and that this could prevent transferring paratransit regulatory and integration approaches across countries, and even cities in the same country, without adaptation to local conditions.     

关于渤海湾危险货物滚装运输的探讨

文中分析了渤海湾危险货物滚装运输发展的现状,论述了制约危险货物滚装运输的主要因素,提出了相应的改进建议和加强监督管理的措施     

深化海事系统内事业单位收入分配制度改革探析

文中对2006年的海事系统内事业单位收入分配制度改革进行解读,分析了改革中存在的问题并建议从开展岗位聘用制度、建立绩效工资核定和运行机制、构建科学合理的绩效考核机制等方面深化海事系统内事业单位收入分配制度改革成果。     

海事民意实时回访的法价值探析

海事民意实时回访改变了以往海事行政主体与相对人之间单一的"命令—服从"关系,取而代之的是双方的沟通、交流、互动与合作,这使海事主管机构能够及时、准确地了解广大相对人的利益诉求,有针对性地调整工作方向,找准工作切入点,从而提高行政效能。     

综合交通体系下“十二五”水运发展方向的思考

阐述水运在我国综合交通体系中的地位与作用,分析世界金融危机背景下我国"十二五"经济和产业发展方向及对水运发展的主要影响,对当前热点、难点问题进行了探讨与思考,最后提出了促进水运发展的对策与建议。