Pedestrian accessibility is increasingly seen as a key aspect of efficient towns and cities, and its improvement faces the challenge of addressing systemic issues.

A PhD work is underway at Auckland University of Technology (AUT), aiming to support local decisions through evidence on how streets’ characteristics participate to difficulties of reaching local destinations on foot or by wheelchair, linking users’ experiences with objective aspects of the streets’ built environment and transport systems. It will also provide an overview of (1) international and national evidence linking the quality of the built environment, its perception by people with disabilities, and their trips; (2) the extension of current difficulties to reach destinations (populations affected and their characteristics – quantitative analysis of the Household Travel Survey data and the Auckland Transport Active Modes survey); and (3) challenges and barriers to implementation as seen by practitioners from different professional disciplines involved in streets’ design, transport systems management and operation, and public health.

The research is undertaken by Tamara Bozovic (MSc Transport Planning and a 15-year experience as strategic transport planner), under the supervision of Professor Erica Hinckson and Dr Moushumi Chaudhury, both leading research in the relationships between the built environment and physical activity. The team would like to reach out to the Transportation Group members to:

• inform of the study and of their availability to link with projects it could benefit
• welcome local non-academic evidence, to be integrated in the systematic literature review
• invite members to participate later in the practitioners’ survey and focus group

They welcome your contact regarding any of the above – feel free to contact Tamara writing at rfq8954@autuni.ac.nz

For more detail on the research, click here