Are the findings of travel behaviour research correctly integrated into managerial and investment decisions, and if not, why not? Drawing on both personal and professional experience, the author argues that very few of the results obtained from research into how people perceive transport facilities have found their way into implementation. For example, it has been established for some 20 years that greater disutility is attached to time spent walking or waiting for public transport than the time actually spent in- vehicle. Yet it is hard to think of many investments which have taken account of this fact, with the exception of cross-platform interchanges on the Victoria Line. The location of bus-stops, for example, appears to be based almost entirely on operational grounds, not passenger convenience; and in recent years it has become the practice on the London Underground to withdraw lift services entirely in the course of replacement. The paper presents a number of examples, where management or investment policy has ignored travellers' requirements. While in some cases financial stringency may be the underlying reason, in many others it would appear that improvements could be effected straightforwardly and inexpensively.
Abstract