An initial review of UK transport policy and practice since the 1960s leads into more detailed examination of travel behaviour and its relevance to the design, analysis and evaluation of transport policies. Issues covered include: satisfying mobility versus improving accessibility; the crucial relationship between land use planning and transport; environmental degradation and the need to develop a sustainable transport policy; financial, administrative, and organisational aspects of transport; and the demographic, economic, social and technological factors which influence the demand for travel. Students will also be introduced to theories and models of behaviour which form the basis for understanding and predicting the response of a travel market to transport policies. The course will be illustrated with case studies.

By the end of the module students should be able to:

1. Appreciate the challenge facing transport planners in meeting travel needs and desires
2. Understand the key elements of transport policies and their impact upon travel
3. Appreciate the demographic, social, economic and technological factors influencing the demand for travel
4. Appreciate the motivations behind and barriers to behavioural changes in transport
5. Critically appraise a range of transport policies for promoting greater sustainability at national, regional and local levels
6. Understand the need for an integrated critical approach to planning and transport, and especially the appraisal of transport policies, in order to protect and conserve both built and natural environments
7. Understand the way in which personal values and attitudes, of both the public and the planner, can affect travel behaviour including modal choice

The module will be delivered through lectures and seminars, in-person and on campus unless mitigating circumstances arise. Seminars will enable small group discussion about key issues relevant to the module. Students are expected to engage with additional module content on Learning Central e.g. readings or other material, to prepare for lectures and seminars, and to supplement and deepen taught components.

1. Individual skills in problem definition (conceptualisation; identification of analytical, organisational, and reactive dimensions of policies) and in research and data collection (using both primary and secondary sources)
2. The ability to produce a consultancy-style report, involving the synthesis and application of knowledge to practice including an appreciation of the need to take a strategic view
3. Demonstrable applied skills in policy and data interpretation through work on an individual research brief

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment takes place throughout the module.  There are learning checks in every lecture and the workshops which support the assessments provide an opportunity for peer to peer and tutor feedback.

THE OPPORTUNITY FOR REASSESSMENT IN THIS MODULE:

Re-assessment

Students are permitted to be reassessed in a module which they have failed, in line with University regulations. https://intranet.cardiff.ac.uk/staff/teaching-and-supporting-students/teaching-support/academic-regulations. You will only be reassessed on the components of the module in which you have failed. The format of the reassessment will be the same as the original assessment and will take place in the Summer re-sit period.

Typically, topics covered in this module include:

• Travel trends and the evolution of transport policy and planning
• The relationship between travel behaviour and urban form
• Policy instruments to influence travel behaviour
• Trip reduction programmes
• Changing travellers' behaviour
• Low carbon travel – walking, cycling and reducing the need to travel
• Transport impacts: society, economy and the environment
• The role of government: transport policy and transport interventions