Community Transport of the Future Research Project

Category

Excellence in Research and Development Award

Submitting Organisation

Institute for Public Policy and Governance, University of Technology Sydney

Collaborating Partners iMOVE Australia

Department of Transport and Main Roads

Queensland

Transport for NSW

Department of Transport Victoria

Department of Transport Western Australia

Over the past few decades there has been growing interest – in the research community and among policy-makers – in ‘transport disadvantage’, and the impact this has in creating barriers to social and economic inclusion and participation. Community transport is a critical element of our wider transport network that ensures equitable transport options exist for everybody, especially those with specific or more complex needs.

The Institute for Public Policy and Governance at the University of Technology Sydney worked with ITS Australia and four state transport agencies to design an exploratory study to provide a firstever comprehensive, strategic assessment of community transport and its context in Australia.

The research, supported by iMOVE, involved three extensive desktop literature and evidence reviews, interviews and workshops with key government, industry and community transport stakeholders, demographic modelling and additional qualitative analysis around technology, funding and systemic barriers. It offers a foundational understanding of community transport across Australia, its critical role and social value and the most pressing strategic issues facing the sector and its customers.

The study reveals that many in the community, especially those with specific or more complex needs, still struggle to get where they need to go – with the difficulties experienced around transport disadvantage set to grow significantly within the next ten years. The research also highlights the latest trends and developments in emerging technologies within community transport and how these can improve access, services and experiences for customers, reduce costs and allow more efficient allocation of resources by providers, and better enable a broad range of policy and community outcomes.

The findings emphasise potential opportunities for more systemic, policy, technological and service model innovations that the community transport sector, policymakers and industry should consider.