Andrew Ivins is a Teaching Associate and PhD Researcher at the School of Geography and Planning, Cardiff University. His research and teaching interests include planning for health and wellbeing, and processes of decision making.
Why do so many of us choose to drive? An easy assumption is that we hop in the car when we need to go from A to B, particularly where A is home and B is work. However, research into factors that impact people’s choice of transport suggests that A to B travel is often the reserve of the solo commuter. By comparison, those with dependent children or those undertaking leisure travel experience the additional challenge of transporting others and load carrying of ‘stuff’. The car subsequently becomes the default option to overcome these challenges.
Our report titled ‘The importance of load carrying and accompanied journeys in family and leisure mobility decisions in Cardiff Capital Region’ details research into the challenges of family and leisure travel, what they mean for the idea of travelling A to B, and how they affect travel choices. Funded by an RTPI Early Career Research Grant, the research highlighted the significance of transporting others and load carrying. These findings complement the RTPI’s recent report titled ‘the Location of Development 4’ in which the car was found to provide the widest accessibility to key destinations from newbuild housing in England while remaining the quickest mode of transport in the period 2012-2021.
The challenges of transporting others and load carrying
Research findings indicate that the daily journeys of parents / carers are often not A to B, but include:
- school, creche and nursery drop off(s) and pick up(s)
- travel to and from after school clubs
- visits to family (grandparents)
Families with children of different ages can face more stops and more stuff to carry, while still arriving and leaving work on time.
When undertaking leisure activities, transporting others extends to include family and friends. Those involved in a range of leisure practices (from dog walking to cycling; rock climbing to golf) favour transport that can easily accommodate stuff and passengers. The car comes ready made for such uses whereas bicycles need additional equipment (trailers, panniers), trains and buses often fail to meet people’s schedules, budgets, and load carrying needs, and taxis are seen as too expensive for regular use.
For those with access the car often becomes the default option for transporting others and leisure travel.
What are the solutions?
When faced with transporting others and load carrying, public and active transport compares poorly with the car. As such, transporting others and stuff creates a category of reluctant drivers who would like to leave the car at home but feel they cannot. There is no single solution to this; for example, adding more pushchair (or wheelchair) space to a bus route serviced by 30-minute frequencies remains time poor versus the car.
Workshops with practitioners highlighted that public transport needs to be responsive to time, cost, and distance of journeys while better providing for load carrying of stuff and transporting others.
This research sees opportunities in:
Offering alternatives:
- Cargo bike fleets adapted with kids’ seats for school and extracurricular activity runs
- Reduced prices on public transport, particularly for those under-23 and group travel
- On demand bus investment to supplement scheduled services, particularly at weekends
Vehicle design:
- Increased pushchair and wheelchair capacity alongside step free access
- Increase in double decker bus fleet with ground floor space reserved for pushchair and wheelchair use
- Bike carriages on trains
- Increased storage space on public transport
Station / stop design:
- Connectivity and integration of transport services at key centres
- Accessible walking and cycle routes to stations / stops
- Pushchair and wheelchair accessibility improvements at stops, e.g. fewer kerbs in vicinity
- Increased secure bicycle parking and e-bike charging
Final thought
The research concludes that it is family and leisure travel rather than solo commute travel that poses the greatest challenge to reducing car dependency.
While there are many statements from research participants that could be included here it is perhaps more important to highlight that nobody stated ‘I’ve got a tight schedule, a large family and lots of stuff, I think I'll take the bus’. Unless public transport and active travel can meet the needs of a stuff intensive family and leisure life, it will be no surprise if many continue to choose to drive.
