Infrastructure

From a transport perspective, increasing active travel –and walking in particular– is crucial for the future of sustainable cities, as reflected in global decarbonisation policies and agendas. Further, walking is much more than a mere mode of transport: it provides a fundamental social function, fostering vibrant cohesive communities. Arguably, walking and its associated infrastructure –sidewalks– should rank among the highest priorities for planning authorities. However, efficiency- and speed-driven urbanisation has gradually reallocated street space to private cars, leading to...

This research foregrounds general practices in travel demand research, emphasizing the need to change our ways. A critical barrier preventing travel demand literature from effectively informing policy is the volume of publications without clear, consolidated benchmarks, making it difficult for researchers and policymakers to gather insights and use models to guide decision-making. By emphasizing reproducibility and open collaboration, we aim to enhance the reliability and policy relevance of travel demand research. We present a collaborative infrastructure for transit demand prediction...

Meg-projects are often captivating to political leaders and the public because of their colossal size and the technical hurdles they overcome. This feature of major infrastructure in the landscape has been termed the 'technological sublime' (Marx, 1964; 2000; Nye, 1994). This chapter uses the concept of the sublime to contribute a new dimension to understanding the evolution of mega-project design and optimism bias. The case of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in Northern California is used to demonstrate how the technological sublime dramatically influenced bridge design, project...

On July 1, 2010, the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) raised the tolls on the seven state‐ owned bridges in the San Francisco Bay Area. For six of the bridges, a flat $5 toll was implemented for passenger vehicles with a 50% discount ($2.50 toll) for peak‐period 3+ person carpools, which had previously crossed the bridges free of charge. On the San Francisco‐ Oakland Bay Bridge, a more complex toll structure was put into place. The toll was increased to $6 during weekday peak periods (5‐10 a.m. and 3‐7 p.m.), and the off‐peak weekday toll was left unchanged at $4. The peak period 3+ person...