Flexible transport services: A new market opportunity for public transport

The term Demand-Responsive Transport (DRT) has been increasingly applied in the last 10 years to a niche market that replaces or feeds (usually via small low floor buses or taxis) conventional transport where demand is low and often spread over a large area. More recently, the concept of DRT as a niche market has been broadened to include a wider range of flexible, demand-responsive transport services and is increasingly referred to as Flexible Transport Services (FTSs). The contention of this paper is that well-implemented FTS has the potential to revitalise bus-based public transport services which are traditionally based on fixed networks with variable geographical coverage and levels of service.     

New Zealand public transport procurement strategies in a new legislative environment

In 2003 and 2004 there were major changes to the legislative environment in New Zealand, with the enactment of the Land Transport Management Act, 2003 which formed the New Zealand Transport Agency. The Transport Agency has a statutory role of assisting and advising approved organisations (usually local government) and approving procurement procedures. Following the introduction of the Land Transport Management Act a review of existing public transport legislation took place leading to the introduction of the Public Transport Management Act early in 2009. This paper discusses the role of procurement strategies in obtaining value for money objectives for public transport services within the new legislative environment. A case study of Greater Wellington Regional Council’s Procurement Strategy for bus and ferry services is presented to demonstrate the usefulness of strategic thinking.     

Promoting social inclusion in a deregulated environment: Extending accessibility using collective taxi-based services

Bus based public transport has enjoyed revitalisation in many urban areas but outside large towns and cities its provision and quality remains erratic. Many rural settlements have infrequent services giving rise to social exclusion through transport disadvantage.The UK Government highlighted a need in Towards a Sustainable Transport System (2007) for radical new thinking on rural accessibility to help meet goals of quality of life and accessibility for all and to help meet the challenge in finding carbon friendly ways of meeting rural transport needs. This paper reports work undertaken for the Commission for Integrated Transport, an advisory body to UK Government, on how shared taxi-schemes could be developed within a deregulated environment to meet rural accessibility needs. This is based on an analysis of institutional barriers and comparison between successful mainland European schemes and UK schemes. The paper considers economic viability and the levels of subsidy currently used to provide accessibility in rural areas to show the potential for making current expenditure on rural transport in the UK ‘work harder’ to deliver a collective taxi-based service as part of the public transport mix so as to increase rural accessibility.     

Attitudes toward Participation in Cooperative Coastal Management: Four European Case Studies

Findings are reported of the VALCOAST project that had as one of its research objectives to ascertain: (a) stakeholder willingness to participate and cooperate in coastal management (CM), given local and national CM practices; and (b) stakeholder assessment of the "accessibility" and "friendliness" of current CM processes. The project involved case studies and stakeholder interviews in Belgium, Greece, Spain, and the UK. Major findings include: (1) most stakeholders are willing to cooperate in three out of the four case areas, but not to the same extent; (2) the participating "officials" in the case studies are expecting the stakeholders to be less willing to cooperate than the latter indicate; (3) stakeholders in all case studies do not expect to be heard by those responsible for CM, find it difficult to learn about the relevant institutional arrangements, and consider the communication of the objectives and anticipated impacts of CM policies to be inadequate. It is concluded that the strong evidence of stakeholders' potential willingness to cooperate in local initiatives is very encouraging for a devolved, regional approach to European Union coastal management policies, provided that this potential is capitalized upon in such policy processes.     

Hybrid urban transport systems in developing countries: Portents and prospects

Some South African cities have initiated public transport transformation projects which, in most cases, ultimately envisage the in toto replacement of paratransit operations with formalised BRT systems. There are two likely outcomes: (1) complex negotiations with existing operators and budget constraints will result in the in toto transformation occurring over an extended period of time; or (2) in toto transformation will simply not occur. In either case, cities will depend, for decades, on a ‘hybrid’ public transport system that combines both formal and paratransit operators. This paper presents a case for policy recognition of hybrid systems, and explores how such systems might best be managed. The following categories of hybrid public transport systems are explored through case studies: (1) transformative processes in which paratransit operators are to form or assimilate into companies to operate new services, but this incorporation has proved difficult to complete and the operational and regulatory frameworks remain unchanged; and (2) transformative processes that, from the outset, anticipated a hybrid system and designed the outcome accordingly. A third category of hybrid transport systems, defined as transformative processes that have been amended following a realisation that in toto transformation is unattainable, is also introduced and discussed. The paper concludes by tentatively drawing lessons for appropriate public transport regulation, particularly with respect to Cape Town's transformation project. It is argued that a review of the current national regulatory framework is required to enable possible project modifications that acknowledge system hybridity. It is suggested that regulatory frameworks that accommodate the likely hybrid nature of public transport system outcomes have greater prospects of success than frameworks that do not. Furthermore, it is argued that contextually appropriate and successful public transport transformation projects do not necessarily require the in toto substitution of incumbent paratransit operators, and that they can be integrated with, and complement, formal services.     

DRT技术在压力管道焊缝不停产检测中的应用

分析数字射线成像检测(Digital Radiography Testing, DRT)技术的基本原理与技术优势,介绍DRT技术在压力管道焊缝不停产检测中的应用实例。与常规射线检测(Radiography Testing, RT)技术相比,DRT技术可对焊接材料的内部质量进行更直观清晰的检测,促进焊缝检测结果更加精确,有助于压力管道的安全运行。     

船舶建造焊缝缺陷DRT与常规胶片RT的等效性分析

针对船舶建造中的平对接焊缝,采用不同厚度钢材料母材,分别进行数字射线检测(Digital Radiography Testing, DRT)和常规胶片射线检测(Radiography Testing, RT)的检测技术标准等效性要求对比和检测等效性试验,并对试板焊缝缺陷的DRT和常规胶片RT进行评定。结果表明,DRT与常规胶片RT具有等效性。     

Factors Affecting Disaster Preparedness,Response, and Recovery Using the Community Capitals Framework

Abstract

Disaster research often focuses on how and why communities are affected by a discrete extreme event. We used the community capitals framework to understand how community characteristics influence their preparedness, response to, and recovery from successive or multiple disasters using the 1964 Good Friday Earthquake and the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill as case studies. This study assesses community response to these disasters by reviewing published literature on impacts to create profiles for six communities and by identifying community capitals before and during these disasters, and throughout the long-term recovery. While the presence of rich natural capitals commonly contributed resources to pre-disaster planning and long-term recovery, restriction of resource access immediately following the disasters was detrimental to many communities. Communities with strong political, social, and financial capitals tended to fare better immediately following disasters, enabling longer-term processes of transformation or recovery. However, in some communities the oil spill undermined these capitals more than the earthquake and resulting tsunami. In understanding how use and reliance on community capitals can lead to varied recovery success from different kinds of disasters, these findings can help coastal managers and planners prepare for future disasters.     

The Theory and Practice of Coastal Area Planning: Linking Strategic Planning to Local Communities

Integrated coastal management (ICM) has been slowly accepted over the last decade as a unifying approach for coastal planning and management throughout the world. Coastal planning aimed at achieving the objectives of ICM can be implemented by varying processes and faces many challenges. One major challenge for coastal planning is to adapt the well-developed theoretical principles of ICM to practical and understandable outcomes in local areas. Associated with this challenge is the need to balance coastal planning objectives for conservation and economic development of a nation or state/province with the objectives of the local community. This article describes a three-tiered approach to coastal planning in Victoria, Australia, which will be of value to other countries, particularly those with subnational coastal planning jurisdictions. This approach not only has the aim of balancing subnational (e.g., state government) and local objectives, but also of applying the theoretical concept of ICM in practice on the ground. In addition, the approach sets out to achieve a sense of ownership of the planning process by local communities by maximizing their involvement at all levels of planning and also by making the state strategy as easy to understand and follow as possible.     

The subsidization of seaports: an alternative approach

The introduction of the tonnage tax for shipping companies has been a response to the declining fleets in many European countries. There are strategic and commercial reasons why a maritime presence is desirable, not least of which is to maintain an important skill base. Although regimes have differed they all offer some form of preferential rates of tax for those ships on the register. In certain cases this tax subsidy has been linked to a requirement to train seafarers, notably in the UK. This article analyses the impact of the tonnage tax system and its success in achieving its objectives of fleet expansion and employment with particular reference to the UK.     

Developments in UK shipping: the tonnage tax

The new UK Government, elected in May 1997, came to power with a commitment to reverse the decline of the UK shipping industry and enhance the employment prospects of UK seafarers. The Government commissioned Lord Alexander of Weedon to investigate the case for a tonnage tax. In this paper, the economic arguments for supporting the UK shipping industry are reviewed. There is some evidence that the UK holds a comparative advantage in world markets in key sectors of the shipping industry and on-shore maritime related activities, but is being undermined by lower foreign taxes. In the absence of government support, the UK shipping industry is likely to continue to decline, and, by further reducing the supply of qualified UK ex-seafarers, put at risk the successful on-shore activities. Various measures that might be used to support a national shipping industry, e.g. a tonnage tax, are considered. The paper concludes by discussing the likely impact of the tonnage tax on the UK's shipping industry.     

Contracting regimes for bus services: What have we learnt after 20 years?

This paper reviews a number of themes that have played a crucial role in the debate on alternative contracting regimes for the provision of urban bus services. We have selected four crucial issues to reflect on: (i) contractual regimes (in particular competitive tendering as compared to negotiated performance-based contracts, as means to award the rights to provide service); (ii) contract completeness (focussing on ex ante and ex post elements); (iii) building trust through partnership; and (iv) tactical or system level planning for bus services. Experience in these areas suggests that competitive tendering has frequently not lived up to expectations and that negotiation is likely in many circumstances to deliver better value for money.     

Tonnage tax: is it working?

The introduction of the tonnage tax for shipping companies has been a response to the declining fleets in many European countries. There are strategic and commercial reasons why a maritime presence is desirable, not least of which is to maintain an important skill base. Although regimes have differed they all offer some form of preferential rates of tax for those ships on the register. In certain cases this tax subsidy has been linked to a requirement to train seafarers, notably in the UK. This article analyses the impact of the tonnage tax system and its success in achieving its objectives of fleet expansion and employment with particular reference to the UK.     

Developments in UK shipping: the tonnage tax

The new UK Government, elected in May 1997, came to power with a commitment to reverse the decline of the UK shipping industry and enhance the employment prospects of UK seafarers. The Government commissioned Lord Alexander of Weedon to investigate the case for a tonnage tax. In this paper, the economic arguments for supporting the UK shipping industry are reviewed. There is some evidence that the UK holds a comparative advantage in world markets in key sectors of the shipping industry and on-shore maritime related activities, but is being undermined by lower foreign taxes. In the absence of government support, the UK shipping industry is likely to continue to decline, and, by further reducing the supply of qualified UK ex-seafarers, put at risk the successful on-shore activities. Various measures that might be used to support a national shipping industry, e.g. a tonnage tax, are considered. The paper concludes by discussing the likely impact of the tonnage tax on the UK's shipping industry.     

Operating differential subsidies: problems and alternatives for the United States

In this paper a proposal for a Competitive Rate of Return (CRR) based operating-subsidy system is made as an alternative to the existing US foreign-cost parity ODS system. Such an alternative, if adopted, could be successful in meaningfully relating US government maritime subsidy programmes to the legitimate financial needs of the industry. From the operator's viewpoint, the risk of drastic revenue fluctuations is removed, yet adequate opportunities are provided for firms with above average performance to be rewarded for their efficiency in higher than average profits. similarly, poorly run firms have an opportunity to lose money, in spite of government subsidies.

From the government's viewpoint, the CRR programme guarantees the provision of essential shipping services at the lowest possible cost. Because of substantial incentives to the operator on both the revenue and cost side of his profit equation, it is more likely that long-run government operating subsidies can be reduced under CRR than under the present system.

Although the CRR system has been described for use in determining subsidies for both bulk and general cargo carriers, it has been recommended that this system be considered first for implementation in the case of bulk vessels, because of the newness of the bulk subsidy programme. In addition, the 1970 Act gives MarAd the flexibility to initiate such a programme for bulk vessels without the necessity of new legislation.     

Dedication to Peter Douglas (August 22, 1942–April 1, 2012)

Ecosystem management has been deemed a promising approach to environmental management in many settings. The ecosystem approach promises improved use of scientific information, better management coordination, and more meaningful public participation in environmental decision making. Yet, there is little evidence for how well ecosystem management efforts actually achieve their goals. This article presents an in‐depth analysis of one ecosystem management effort, the Albemarle‐Pamlico Estuarine Study (APES), which was part of the National Estuary Program. The APES failed to meet the objectives of ecosystem management in several visible ways. However, this case study reveals that the APES also had many positive results that were less visible to participants and observers. The performance of the APES is explained with reference to seven paradoxes inherent in the concept of ecosystem management. These findings have implications for appropriate expectations and evaluation of other ecosystem management efforts.     

Community Participation in Marine Protected Area Implementation: A Case Study of the Sitka Local Area Management Plan

This article has two goals: (1) to consider the underlying semantic confusion surrounding the promotion of “social science” in the design and establishment of marine protected areas and (2) to demonstrate the successful community processes that led to the designation of Sitka, Alaska's Local Area Management Plan (LAMP) for halibut fishing in the vicinity of Sitka. Uniting a collection of diverse “social” issues creates ambiguity in actual problem solving—extensive generalization can not resolve a specific issue. The Sitka LAMP is a specific case with clear details and a traceable history of success, designed to sustain the healthy status of Sitka's local halibut resource. The development of the Sitka LAMP designation demonstrates the importance of community collaboration and exhibits methods that could potentially be modeled in other locations.     

Predictability of the dry bulk shipping market by BIFFEX

When BIFFEX (Baltic International Freight Futures Exchange) came ijnto existence in 1985, many critics were perssimistic that it would have a successful future. In spite of the eight year's surival of BIFFEX, a recent empirical study shows that BIFFEX is not widely used a s a hedging tool ijn the shipping community, unlike the expectations and recommendations of many experts. one reason could be that BIFFEX may not be considered peredictive of the physical market and, therefore, investors might be suspicious of the hedging effect. The objective of this paper is to test this argument by exdamining the predicatability of BIFFEX in the dry bulk shipping market up to six months. Prior to the real situation, the explainable power ranges from 90% in a one-month advance to 23% in a six-month advance.