Recently, the relationship between social exclusion and transport has become a major focus of policy attention.
As with any emergent policy field, agreement on definitions of social exclusion, standards and modes of measurement of social exclusion and the development of data bases which identify the precise impacts, both positive and negative, of transport on social exclusion are some way off.
This page seeks to begin the refining of the policy debate around social exclusion and transport. The page will begin the development of a data base on the topic.
As a beginning in this process of refinement, it is important to notice that most discussions of social exclusion and transport commence from a concern with the measurement of the direct accessibilities of individual respondents - does older person A have direct access to a chemists or to a post office. Indirect accessibilities - access to a friend or young person who will perform the necessary survival tasks undertaken at the chemists or the post office - have received very little attention. Understanding the structure of social networks is crucial to the understanding of indirect accessibilities - and therefore to the relationship between social exclusion and transport.
On line articles and reports:
Useful links and data paths:
Policy in progress - transport innovations and demand responsive projects:
Communities in action - public service failure and transport advocacy:
and
Margaret Grieco, D.Phil.(Oxon.), MCIT
Professor Julian Hine,Ph.D.
Professor of Transport at the University of Ulster
e-mail at julian@jhine.demon.co.uk
Professor of Transport and Society,
Transport Research Institute, Napier University,
66 Spylaw Road, Edinburgh, EH10 5BR
e-mail at m.grieco@napier.ac.uk