IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jotrge/v54y2016icp1-9.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Urban transport justice

Author

Listed:
  • Gössling, Stefan

Abstract

Many cities in the world seek to establish more sustainable urban transport systems with a view to reduce accidents, congestion, air and noise pollution, and to improve social interactions, liveability and amenity values. Against this background, this paper frames urban transportation as an issue of justice: contemporary transport systems are characterized by injustice, as they tend to favour and prioritize motorized transport, accepting that considerable environmental and social burdens are put on more sustainable forms of transportation, other traffic participants and society as a whole. To conceptualize ‘urban transport justice’, the paper discusses three dimensions where injustices are apparent: Exposure to traffic risks and pollutants; distribution of space; and valuation of transport time. It is argued that public and political recognition of urban transport injustices provides significant argument for changes in urban planning, transport infrastructure development and traffic management.

Suggested Citation

  • Gössling, Stefan, 2016. "Urban transport justice," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 1-9.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:54:y:2016:i:c:p:1-9
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2016.05.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692316302319
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2016.05.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. van Duppen, Jan & Spierings, Bas, 2013. "Retracing trajectories: the embodied experience of cycling, urban sensescapes and the commute between ‘neighbourhood’ and ‘city’ in Utrecht, NL," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 234-243.
    2. N. Künzli & R. Kaiser & S. Medina & M. Studnicka & O. Chanel & P. Filliger & M. Herry & F. Horak & V. Puybonnieux-Texier & Philippe Quénel & Jodi Schneider & R. Seethaler & Jean-Christophe Vergnaud & , 2000. "Public health Impact of Outdoor and Traffic related Air Pollution," Post-Print halshs-00150955, HAL.
    3. Banister, David & Hickman, Robin, 2013. "Transport futures: Thinking the unthinkable," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 283-293.
    4. Konrad Miciukiewicz & Geoff Vigar, 2012. "Mobility and Social Cohesion in the Splintered City: Challenging Technocentric Transport Research and Policy-making Practices," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 49(9), pages 1941-1957, July.
    5. Martens, Karel & Golub, Aaron & Robinson, Glenn, 2012. "A justice-theoretic approach to the distribution of transportation benefits: Implications for transportation planning practice in the United States," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 46(4), pages 684-695.
    6. Schwanen, Tim & Banister, David & Anable, Jillian, 2011. "Scientific research about climate change mitigation in transport: A critical review," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(10), pages 993-1006.
    7. Richard Arnott & Tilmann Rave & Ronnie Schöb, 2005. "Alleviating Urban Traffic Congestion," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262012197, April.
    8. Stanley, John K. & Hensher, David A. & Loader, Chris, 2011. "Road transport and climate change: Stepping off the greenhouse gas," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(10), pages 1020-1030.
    9. Karel Martens, 2012. "Justice in transport as justice in accessibility: applying Walzer’s ‘Spheres of Justice’ to the transport sector," Transportation, Springer, vol. 39(6), pages 1035-1053, November.
    10. G.A. Cohen, 1990. "Equality of What? On Welfare, Goods and Capabilities," Discussion Papers (REL - Recherches Economiques de Louvain) 1990035, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES).
    11. Judit Bodnar, 2015. "Reclaiming public space," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 52(12), pages 2090-2104, September.
    12. Lucas, Karen, 2012. "Transport and social exclusion: Where are we now?," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 105-113.
    13. Baltas, George & Saridakis, Charalampos, 2013. "An empirical investigation of the impact of behavioural and psychographic consumer characteristics on car preferences: An integrated model of car type choice," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 92-110.
    14. P. Filliger & M. Herry & F. Horak & V. Puybonnieux-Texier & P. Quenel & J. Schneider & R.K. Seethaler & J.C. Vernaud & H. Sommer & N. Künzli & R. Kaiser & S. Medina & M. Studnicka & Olivier Chanel, 2000. "Public-health impact of outdoor and traffic-related air pollution: a European assessment," Post-Print hal-01462907, HAL.
    15. Erik Hysing & Lotta Fr�ndberg & Bertil Vilhelmson, 2015. "Compromising sustainable mobility? The case of the Gothenburg congestion tax," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(6), pages 1058-1075, June.
    16. Banister, David, 2008. "The sustainable mobility paradigm," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 15(2), pages 73-80, March.
    17. David Levinson, 2009. "Equity Effects of Road Pricing: A Review," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 33-57, July.
    18. Kenworthy, Jeffrey R. & Laube, Felix B., 1999. "Patterns of automobile dependence in cities: an international overview of key physical and economic dimensions with some implications for urban policy," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 33(7-8), pages 691-723.
    19. Thomas Götschi & Jan Garrard & Billie Giles-Corti, 2016. "Cycling as a Part of Daily Life: A Review of Health Perspectives," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(1), pages 45-71, January.
    20. INT PANIS, Luc & DE GEUX, Bas & VANDENBULCKE, Grégory & WILLEMS, Henry, 2010. "Exposure to particulate matter in traffic: A comparison of cyclists and car passengers," LIDAM Reprints CORE 2211, Université catholique de Louvain, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE).
    21. Kyttä, Marketta & Hirvonen, Jukka & Rudner, Julie & Pirjola, Iiris & Laatikainen, Tiina, 2015. "The last free-range children? Children’s independent mobility in Finland in the 1990s and 2010s," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 1-12.
    22. Bert van Wee, 2011. "Transport and Ethics," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14281.
    23. Susan S. Fainstein, 2001. "Competitiveness, Cohesion, and Governance: Their Implications for Social Justice," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(4), pages 884-888, December.
    24. Lucas, Karen, 2006. "Providing transport for social inclusion within a framework for environmental justice in the UK," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 40(10), pages 801-809, December.
    25. Mullen, Caroline & Tight, Miles & Whiteing, Anthony & Jopson, Ann, 2014. "Knowing their place on the roads: What would equality mean for walking and cycling?," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 238-248.
    26. Gordon Mitchell & Danny Dorling, 2003. "An Environmental Justice Analysis of British Air Quality," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 35(5), pages 909-929, May.
    27. Gössling, Stefan & Choi, Andy S., 2015. "Transport transitions in Copenhagen: Comparing the cost of cars and bicycles," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 106-113.
    28. Stefan Bratzel, 1999. "Conditions of success in sustainable urban transport policyPolicy change in 'relatively successful' European cities," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(2), pages 177-190, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mullen, Caroline & Tight, Miles & Whiteing, Anthony & Jopson, Ann, 2014. "Knowing their place on the roads: What would equality mean for walking and cycling?," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 238-248.
    2. Kębłowski, Wojciech & Dobruszkes, Frédéric & Boussauw, Kobe, 2022. "Moving past sustainable transport studies: Towards a critical perspective on urban transport," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 74-83.
    3. Karen Lucas & Bert Wee & Kees Maat, 2016. "A method to evaluate equitable accessibility: combining ethical theories and accessibility-based approaches," Transportation, Springer, vol. 43(3), pages 473-490, May.
    4. Zhang, Mengzhu & Zhao, Pengjun, 2021. "Literature review on urban transport equity in transitional China: From empirical studies to universal knowledge," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    5. Nazari Adli, Saeid & Donovan, Stuart, 2018. "Right to the city: Applying justice tests to public transport investments," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 56-65.
    6. Wojciech Keblowski & Frédéric Dobruszkes & Kobe Boussauw, 2022. "Moving past sustainable transport studies: Towards a critical perspective on urban transport," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/341191, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    7. Golub, Aaron & Martens, Karel, 2014. "Using principles of justice to assess the modal equity of regional transportation plans," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 10-20.
    8. Stefan Gössling & Andreas Humpe & Todd Litman & Daniel Metzler, 2019. "Effects of Perceived Traffic Risks, Noise, and Exhaust Smells on Bicyclist Behaviour: An Economic Evaluation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-15, January.
    9. Schwanen, Tim & Lucas, Karen & Akyelken, Nihan & Cisternas Solsona, Diego & Carrasco, Juan-Antonio & Neutens, Tijs, 2015. "Rethinking the links between social exclusion and transport disadvantage through the lens of social capital," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 123-135.
    10. Gössling, Stefan & Cohen, Scott Allen & Hares, Andrew, 2016. "Inside the black box: EU policy officers' perspectives on transport and climate change mitigation," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 83-93.
    11. Jephcote, Calvin & Chen, Haibo & Ropkins, Karl, 2016. "Implementation of the Polluter-Pays Principle (PPP) in local transport policy," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 58-71.
    12. Gössling, Stefan & Cohen, Scott, 2014. "Why sustainable transport policies will fail: EU climate policy in the light of transport taboos," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 197-207.
    13. Santos, Georgina & Behrendt, Hannah & Teytelboym, Alexander, 2010. "Part II: Policy instruments for sustainable road transport," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 46-91.
    14. Andersson, Alfred & Winslott Hiselius, Lena & Adell, Emeli, 2020. "The effect of marketing messages on the motivation to reduce private car use in different segments," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 22-30.
    15. Liu, Qiyang & Lucas, Karen & Marsden, Greg & Liu, Yang, 2019. "Egalitarianism and public perception of social inequities: A case study of Beijing congestion charge," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 47-62.
    16. Verlinghieri, Ersilia, 2020. "Learning from the grassroots: A resourcefulness-based worldview for transport planning," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 364-377.
    17. Karel Martens, 2012. "A justice-theoretic exploration of accessibility measures," Chapters, in: Karst T. Geurs & Kevin J. Krizek & Aura Reggiani (ed.), Accessibility Analysis and Transport Planning, chapter 11, pages 195-210, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    18. Boisjoly, Geneviève & El-Geneidy, Ahmed M., 2017. "The insider: A planners' perspective on accessibility," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 33-43.
    19. Ben-Elia, Eran & Benenson, Itzhak, 2019. "A spatially-explicit method for analyzing the equity of transit commuters' accessibility," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 31-42.
    20. Ryan, Jean & Martens, Karel, 2023. "Defining and implementing a sufficient level of accessibility: What’s stopping us?," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:54:y:2016:i:c:p:1-9. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-transport-geography .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.