People's perceptions of transport systems, and their personal mobility, significantly impact on their travel choices.
Understanding individual's attitudes towards modes of transport, and underlying reasons behind, them is key to developing mobility services that truly meet the needs of a wide range of users. It aligns closely with ITP's aim to improve the way the world moves.
Our team includes experts in the application of qualitative research across a range of transport contexts. Our knowledge and experience enables clients to gain deeper insight into public perceptions of current, and proposed future, transport networks.
We've used qualitative research techniques to inform major transport policy reviews and design public transport systems. These include UK government reform of the national Disabled Persons Parking (Blue Badge) Scheme and the design of BRT systems in Africa and Asia.
Significant challenges often constrain disabled and older peoples’ ability to access jobs, services and social networks. Consequently, many seek help and support when making decisions about using private modes of travel. ITP led an in-depth review of this service sector to help the Department for Transport (DfT) understand its future funding and policy support role.
We undertook primary research with over 30 mobility service providers, third party organisations and service users, alongside 17 Focus Group discussions and 18 in-depth interviews with older and disabled people who were from different backgrounds and experienced different health, physical and sensory impairments. Our findings informed DfT and other Government departments’ strategic decision making regarding future policy and grant funding support for these types of mobility services.
The Third Central Leicestershire and Leicester Local Transport Plans (LTP3) aspire to balance key challenges of delivering growth and sustainability alongside the realities of affordability, deteriorating air quality, and global climate change. To inform their development, the local Councils wanted to seek local people's views on a range of transport issues.
ITP was appointed to design and facilitate a series of 12 discussion group meetings in order to gain a deep understanding of local people’s perceptions of transport issues, and attitudes towards potential improvements that could be delivered through the Councils’ implementation of the LTP3 strategy. The findings from the study were built-in to the LTP3 documents and have helped to shape local transport policy.
The national concessionary travel scheme in the UK allows older and disabled people to travel on the bus for free. Transport Focus wanted to understand the impact of this scheme on bus passengers and commissioned ITP to carry out this research.
We completed surveys with bus users at stops in a variety of locations across the UK. The data we collected was supplemented by focus groups to discuss attitudes and options towards the scheme in greater depth. The research identified that the scheme is popular with older and disabled bus users who feel they are able to lead full and active lives as a result of the scheme. Non-concessionary passholders were equally as positive about the scheme.
