Title: Inclusive and healthy mobility: Understanding trends in concessionary travel in the West Midlands
Funder: Economic and Social Research Council

Abstract: In this project, we will develop a Data Linkage and Analytics Framework that permits the systematic analysis of new, novel, rich and complex datasets routinely collected by transport authorities for geographically extensive areas. The objective is to better understand the pressing policy challenges of social exclusion in daily mobility. The project will use data on electronic ticketing, GPS-tracked vehicle movements and ancillary sources collected by Transport for West Midlands and linked to administrative, consumer and survey data collected by the Office for National Statistics, the Department for Transport and ESRC. The project will use the secure data and computing infrastructure available at the ESRC Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC) to store, manage, link and process the data. Given the demonstrator nature of this grant call, the focus will be upon travel patterns and behaviour change by older residents, who are eligible for concessionary travel under the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS). Transport for West Midlands has recently detected a worrying dramatic decline in bus boardings by concessionary pass holders. There is an urgent need to understand and assess these developments, in particular with respect to their implications for health and well-being. Are declining mobility trends indicative of systemic failures to address the mobility needs of older residents? What, if any, are the likely consequences for social care and older residents' abilities to lead independent lives - for example with respect to social participation, fulfilling daily consumption needs, or maintaining livelihoods in a context of limited social provision and health care? In order to investigate the possible causes of the decline in boardings, the procedures set out in our research design will examine and characterise observed mobility trends among concessionary pass holders that have withdrawn from frequent pass use since 2010 (the year in which electronic travel cards were introduced in the West Midlands Metropolitan Area). In order to establish potential causes of the decline, the mobility profiles will be compared with others that indicate sustained usage. This paired comparison will be grounded in a range of potential transport disadvantage indicators, derived by linking the profiles to small area statistics, indicators of consumer behaviour and transport surveys. The specific policy problem of declining boardings will thus be used as a way to develop a general Data Linkage and Analytics Framework that can be applied to study transport and social exclusion more generally in different geographical contexts. Since an increasing number of cities in the United Kingdom and beyond are introducing electronic fare collection systems for bus passengers, there is a demonstrable need for a transferable framework of this sort. The project will produce a set of policy recommendations, jointly formulated by UCL and Transport for West Midlands, as well as a clear strategic commitment to scale up and extend the framework. We envisage that a long-term societal benefit will be the use of the methods and findings to inform ways of improving and promoting sustainable, inclusive and health-supporting mobility for everyone across the country.


Research activity codes: 1.2 PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC PROCESSES;1.4 METHODOLOGIES AND MEASUREMENTS
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE