The technique of travel blending - an individual action approach to the reduction of the impact of the car - has now been trialled in a number of cities around the world over the past two to three years. The method makes use of simple principles to help people make equally simple changes to their travel behaviour to fit in with their lifestyles. It is based on: giving people an understandable, overall goal (for example, improving the quality of life in Adelaide through reducing the use of the car), letting them measure their existing travel behaviour, giving them personalised tips for change (tips that fit into their existing lifestyle), and providing an environment of reinforcement (for example, family, work or school situation). The application in Adelaide is more extensive than other approaches in making sure the method is viable, undertaking a survey and then a series of trials, each one more extensive than the previous one - allowing modifications at each stage based on feedback from participants of 20 percent, and reductions for the population as a whole of around 11 percent. Furthermore there are indications that these reductions are sustainable. Finally this paper describes the latest and most extensive trial undertaken to test the applicability of the method on a region-wide scale. (A)
Abstract