A travel-to-work survey of 3000 employed adults was carried out in 1978 in an inner and two outer areas of greater Manchester. Results from the survey show that access to employment opportunities was influenced by the mode of transport used. Cars provided the highest levels of access in terms of travel time and the range of destinations that could be reached. Car users travelled twice as fast as bus users. From the three survey areas, a 30 minute car journey provided access to widely overlapping areas, whereas, workplaces reached by bus were self-contained for a 30 minute journey. Bus users also had a limited route and destination choice. Residents of the inner area were more dependent on the city centre for jobs than outer area residents, but among those who commuted outwards, a higher proportion of car users located jobs in the peripheral areas of the city than bus users. From Wythenshawe, the destinations reached by car were spread widely through the southern half of the city whereas the destinations reached by bus were largely confined to the radial corridor to the city centre. From Swinton and Pendlebury, the range of destinations reached by car was only slightly higher than that by bus. (Author/publisher)
Abstract