Transportation planning is sometimes criticized within the wider field of Urban

Question

Transportation planning is sometimes criticized within the wider field of Urban Planning for an over-reliance on quantitative analysis. Some argue that transportation planning should be based on a more subjective, qualitative analysis of the needs of the community. Critics further state that reliance on quantitative methods removes the critical “human element” from planning, ignoring key issues that cannot be examined by technology. Do you agree with this perspective? How could Transportation Planners introduce greater subjectivity into the transportation planning process? Please provide a 3-5 paragraph response.

Explanation / Answer

Counting the traffic volume and calculating the capacity of the road is one of the traditional method used for transportation planning. Other quantitative methods such as speed-distance study which calculates the time taken for travel etc are also traditionally used. Here, the primary party for which planning is done is not the individual, but the car. Even the measurement unit of vehicular traffic is passenger car units. The planning process is also oriented towards accomodating more cars on road.

This approach leads to the problem of increasing car volume and ownership. The mode wider the roads become, the more number of car users will ply on road. Thus the roads will get chocked. The argument for planning that considers the human element is valid in this scenario. Transportation planning can be oriented towards movement of maximum number of people with least effort and maximum efficiency. This is where prioritising public/mass transit modes can show good results. Along with this, concepts such as transit oriented development if implemented, the requirement of people to travel will come down and the ease of travel will also increase.

In the non convetional planning approach, priority can be given to ride quality and safety. Thus, instead of travel being a mechanical process, it can be made as a routine form of exercise or relaxation. Promoting cycle tracks and Walkways, giving pedestrian amenities and demand based public transport systems can all help to improve the quality of travel.

This subjectivity can be brought into planning by studying the behavioral patterns of commuters, providing thewm with wide range of commuting options and efficient mixed use land planning where commutation can be minimised. Health and environment can be considered as parameters rather than passenger car counts. This will bring a human touch to transportation planning.

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