Vicious or virtuous circles? Exploring the vulnerability of drivers to break low urban speed limits

Levels of support for 20 mph limits in Great Britain are consistently high. However, these positive attitudes are not translating into similarly positive behaviour changes in terms of complying with these new speed limits. Recent research from the authors studied the complex relationship between support and compliance, with qualitative findings suggesting that copycat driving could create a ‘vicious circle effect’ that leads to increased levels of non-compliance. However it is also possible that an alternative ‘virtuous circle’ effect may emerge from the high levels of societal support for 20 mph limits pressurising drivers to comply with speed limits. In this work the authors investigated these issues and we report on data and analysis of a large scale survey of drivers and residents undertaken in Great Britain. We explain the origins of vicious and virtuous circles in driver behaviour and study the data from the survey, offering an analysis of attitudes and claimed behaviours that has implications for policy-makers and professionals working with low urban speed limits. We discuss the issues for speed limit enforcement, making reference to the public relations ‘battle’ for public opinion. It is concluded that normative compliance, triggered by community and other campaigning, may be the most realistic mechanism for countering the difficulties of government funding in promoting compliance.     

Comparing travel mode and trip chain choices between holidays and weekdays

Choices of travel mode and trip chain as well as their interplays have long drawn the interests of researchers. However, few studies have examined the differences in the travel behaviors between holidays and weekdays. This paper compares the choice of travel mode and trip chain between holidays and weekdays tours using travel survey data from Beijing, China. Nested Logit (NL) models with alternative nesting structures are estimated to analyze the decision process of travelers. Results show that there are at least three differences between commuting-based tours on weekdays and non-commuting tours on holidays. First, the decision structures in weekday and holiday tours are opposite. In weekday tours people prefer to decide on trip chain pattern prior to choosing travel mode, whereas in holiday tours travel mode is chosen first. Second, holiday tours show stronger dependency on cars than weekday tours. Third, travelers on holidays are more sensitive to changes in tour time than to the changes in tour cost, while commuters on weekdays are more sensitive to tour cost. Findings are helpful for improving travel activity modeling and designing differential transportation system management strategies for weekdays and holidays.     

Shifting from car to active transport: A systematic review of the effectiveness of interventions

IntroductionA promising way to stimulate physical activity is to promote the choice for active modes of transport (walking and cycling). Over the past years, several interventions and policies have been implemented to stimulate this mode shift. However, information concerning the effectiveness of these interventions and policies is still limited. The aim of the present study was to systematically review the effectiveness of interventions designed to stimulate a shift from car use to cycling or walking and to obtain insight into the intervention tools that have been used to promote and/or implement these interventions.MethodsFive databases were searched and articles published in English, Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish were included. Only studies that focussed on a mode shift from car use towards active transport in a general adult population, which were published in peer reviewed journals and which investigated effectiveness were included. Intervention tools used were categorized by using the model of Hoogerwerf & Herweijer, as either legal, economic (subsidy, reward system, penalty), communicative (written materials, behavioural tools) and physical tools (providing bicycles, providing better bicycle facilities at work, adjustment of the environment).ResultsNineteen studies met our inclusion criteria. Studies included described work-place-based interventions, architectural and urbanistic adjustments, population-wide interventions, and bicycle-renting systems. Nearly all studies (except three) showed positive effects concerning a mode shift. Most of the included studies used more than one intervention tool and the tools used differed between types of interventions. However, information about the statistical significance of these results was often lacking and the study methodologies used were not of high quality.ConclusionNearly all studies showed results in a positive direction. However, the quality of the included studies was mostly low and intervention characteristics were poorly described.     

The origin of California’s zero emission vehicle mandate

The California Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) rule, adopted in 1990, is arguably one of the most daring and controversial air quality policies ever adopted. Some consider it a policy failure, while others credit it with launching a revolution in clean automotive technology. This paper is the first systematic empirical study of the policy process that resulted in the adoption of the ZEV mandate. We draw upon theoretical frameworks of the policy process, empirical data from public documents, and personal interviews with key stakeholders, to explain how a confluence of technology, policy, and political circumstances created a window of opportunity that led to the adoption of this policy. We expect the conclusions of our analysis to be useful to other policy debates that involve technological innovation.     

时变胶系统的建模与控制

时间/压力型流体点胶技术在半导体封装过程中有着广泛的应用。由于胶液的非牛顿特性和点胶过程的时变特性,很难建立精确实用的点胶模型。本文通过分析过程参数(胶体体积)变化对系统性能的影响,提出了点胶过程分段变参数模型,并利用该模型对实际点胶系统进行了分段控制。仿真和实验验证了模型与控制的有效性。     

中国航运企业发展现状及对策研究

从中国航运企业所面临机遇、存在的问题两方面出发,即从国际航运市场、政府及企业自身因素分析中国航运企业所处的环境,提出如何提高中国航运企业国际竞争力的策略。     

Assessment of policies and detection of unintended effects: Guiding principles for the consideration of methods and tools in policy-packaging

Single policies or entire policy packages are often assessed using different methods aiming at a quantification of effects as well as the detection of undesired outcomes. The knowledge of potential impacts is essential to take informed policy actions. Hence, there is a constant need for efficient assessment approaches to support policy decision-making. A broad range of such assessment methods is used in policymaking. Some of them are using quantitative data; others are characterized by qualitative information, observations or opinions. Practical experiences with transport policy prove that these methods all have their pros and cons, but none of them are able to detect the full range of effects. This leads to important questions this article deals with, such as what are the strengths and limitations of the different tools and methods for assessing impacts, and how should different approaches be integrated into the policymaking processes?We analyze the ability of assessment methods to detect different kinds of intended and unintended effects, and introduce the concepts of structurally open (mainly qualitative) and structurally closed (mainly quantitative) methods. It is argued that these concepts support making the pros and cons of the tools and methods more explicit and, thus, allow integrating the different tools and methods into the process of policy packaging. Based on a policy package example, we provide practical recommendations on how to integrate different assessment methods adequately and show that both quantitative and qualitative tools should be used in different phases of the process. The main recommendation is to alternate the application of assessment methods with structurally open methods used in the beginning and the end of the policymaking process and applying structurally closed methods in between.     

中国电子商务发展现状及对策

信息产业迅速崛起并已成为世界经济的重要支柱。美国的信息产业已成为超过汽车业和建筑业的第一大产业。在信息产业蓬勃发展的过程中,电子商务正在以其交易方式迅速、成本低廉的优势日益显示出它强大的生命力和广阔的发展前景。同时根据中国具体情况,探讨符合中国国情的电子商务发展道路。同时结合中国电子商务发展的具体情况,分析了我国发展电子商务的意义与制约因素,并在此基础上,通过研究上海旅游信息网和中国商品交易市场的实例,提出中国电子商务发展的根本在于紧密结合中国国情,充分调动政府、企事业、信息服务业等的有利因素,加大政府的支持力度,在高新技术的带动下,迅速发展中国的电子商务。     

政府在发展城市公共交通中的作用研究

针对城市公共交通在我国城市交通结构q-所占比重低、并有下降趋势的问题,本文就我国城市交通的具体情况分析了造成该问题的主要原因,进而通过参考发达国家扶持城市公共交通发展的先进经验,指出我国政府在发展城市公共交通中应起的作用。     

我国新能源汽车产业的发展及其政策支持

2001年我国启动了＂863＂计划电动汽车重大专项,我国新能源汽车产业开局良好。自2004年起,在国家的长远规划和能源政策中,新能源汽车产业和技术的发展被多次强调。2009年是我国新能源汽车产业破局之年,诸多鼓励政策相继出台。2010年我国新能源汽车扶持新政策或将出台。最后提出以财税金融激励手段推进我国新能源汽车发展。