The Scottish Government

Tackling the Abuse of Off-Street Parking for People With Disabilities in Scotland

September 2007

Transport & Travel Research Ltd

To examine the reasons underlying the abuse of parking bays reserved for use by disabled people in off-street car parks in Scotland, to build profiles of the behaviours and characteristics of people who abuse parking spaces and to investigate measures to combat the problem.

A number of measures to tackle the abuse of reserved bays (including signage, barriers, car park charges, patrols and wardens, and issuing fines to offenders) were reviewed. The findings suggest that there is no single method which is appropriate and effective in all situations, but that monitoring and enforcement are essential to prevent inappropriate parking. A Good Practice Guide was developed offering advice to providers of off-street and private car parks.

Home Zones in Scotland: Evaluation Report

August 2007

Land Use Consultants, Faber Maunsell, Small Town and Rural Development Group and the University of Edinburgh

To monitor and evaluate the development and outcomes of four Home Zones in Scotland (residential areas where drivers are made to feel they are guests in an environment designed for people to walk and play). The evaluation included a series of before and after surveys using measures such as traffic flow, speed, pollution, noise, travel patterns, parking, drivers' and residents' views and activities.

For the Home Zones ( HZ) evaluated some of the principal benefits relate to community involvement and empowerment. There were comparatively minor changes in vehicle speeds or volumes, although this was partly a reflection of the location of the pilots, and only limited evidence of increased use of outdoor spaces. Funding is a key issue, largely due to the significant sums involved in implementing HZ projects and the difficulty in synchronising development with council and external funding sources. The report provides conclusions on all aspects of HZ planning and implementation and comprises a useful resource for all involved in HZ projects.

International Comparisons of Rail Networks and Policy Lessons for Scotland

July 2007

Steer Davies Gleave

To reflect on the policy and management framework governing the rail network and to examine whether there are any lessons to be learned by comparison with other rail networks in Europe and further afield. The study examined and compared the structure, ownership, control, planning, funding, operation and regulation of railways in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Hamburg/Schleswig-Holstein, Denmark, Sweden and New Zealand with those in Scotland.

The findings revealed areas where experience in the different networks is driving them to adopt similar approaches, but other areas where a variety of different approaches appear to work successfully. Some rail freight services can operate commercially, but few passenger services can, and there is little scope for competition between them in the market. Estimates suggest that the average proportion of passenger train operating costs recovered from fares varies from 40% to 70%. No consensus has emerged for or against any particular regulatory structure.

Investigation of Travel Behaviour of Visitors to Scotland

May 2007

University of Strathclyde, Derek Halden Consultancy Ltd and the Moffat Centre, Glasgow Caledonian University

To provide an overview of existing sources of data on the use of transport by those visiting Scotland for leisure, recreation and business purposes.

Data on number of visitors and mode of arrival to Scotland is provided within a number of national datasets, but information on how visitors travel around Scotland is piecemeal. Little information exists on visitors' perceptions of transport in Scotland and how it affects their experience of Scotland as a business or leisure destination. There are few transport policy instruments targeted specifically at visitors

Evaluation of Foolsspeed Campaign

March 2007

Institute for Social Marketing, University of Stirling and The Open University

To qualitatively evaluate the final advertisement ('Doppelganger') in the Foolsspeed road safety campaign, and to examine reactions to the campaign as a whole.

Respondents were able to recall all four Foolsspeed advertisements and to describe them in some detail. Respondents generally found the scenarios depicted convincing, and could engage, to varying degrees, with the behaviours and characters portrayed. The findings suggest there is merit, in future road safety campaigns, in focusing on everyday driving behaviours in recognisable Scottish locations. However, it is important that advertisements also contain an element of drama and emotional engagement.

Costs Of Congestion: Literature Based Review Of Methodologies And Analytical Approaches

January 2007

Institute for Transport Studies, University of Leeds

To conduct an international literature review on the costs of road traffic congestion, with a focus on definitions and methods for measuring congestion and the costs of congestion.

The term congestion is widely used, but not always formally defined. The two fundamental approaches to interpreting congestion are a traffic engineering perspective and an economic view. Approaches to measuring congestion include: travel time or speed based measures, volume based measures, area based measures and summary indices. Simpler measures are more commonly applied than relatively complex measures. Three economic terms can be used to measure the costs of congestion: the marginal external cost of congestion, the total cost of congestion and the excess burden of congestion. The review also discusses the link between economic growth and congestion (and the potential for 'decoupling').

National Transport Strategy: Analysis of Written Consultation

December 2006

The Research Shop

To summarise the analysis of over 300 responses received from individuals and organisations to the written consultation on Scotland's National Transport Strategy, which ran between 20 April 2006 and 13 July 2006.

There was much support for the draft vision, aims and high level objectives of a future National Transport Strategy. Opinions on specific topics varied. It was recommended that a robust evaluation framework should accompany the implementation of the National Transport Strategy, which should be reviewed on a 4-yearly cycle.

National Transport Strategy: User Consultation

December 2006

George Street Research

To gather the views of transport users within "hard to reach" audiences who were less likely to respond to the main consultation document on Scotland's National Transport Strategy .

Different groups tended to have relatively similar points of view, with different opinions based primarily on their immediate experiences and perceptions. While the overall objectives of the strategy were welcomed, many respondents found it difficult to think in strategic terms and felt the consultation document was aimed at stakeholders rather than the general public.

SQUIRE Priorities For Reporting

November 2006

Faber Maunsell

To investigate the top five station and train Service Quality Regime ( SQUIRE) priorities that First ScotRail passengers would like to see reported on regularly.

Among train users surveyed, the top five reporting priorities for trains were: general cleanliness, passenger facilities, toilet facilities on train, passenger information displays, heating and ventilation. The top five reporting priorities for stations were: availability of information, ticket office open and waiting times, general cleanliness, shelters/waiting areas CCTV/ security measures. The findings will be used to inform communications and key messages to be conveyed via the Transport Scotland Website.