TRANSPORT

The goal of the OLBIOS Advisory Group is to help you ask the right questions, raise awareness and inform you on the ethical issues you are confronted with, using ethics not as a constraint machine but as a basis for a stronger, deeper, more conscious and creative approach to your field.

Why it is an error to see structural ethics as being resolved at a political level, leaving the transport-design practitioner « free » of ethical worries. What are the negative systemic effects of transport trends and policies?

Why transport and urban design is not a technical process that operates within a politically determined framework that sorts out the ethical side. How seemingly technical design decisions can have major ethical dimensions. Social Exclusion/Inclusion through transport policy.

How institutional systems can produce social or environmental injustice. How car use can cause social isolation for those without cars, and how advancing low-carbon cars can reinforce a carbon-intensive transport system. Transport “victims” suffering from oppression (the exemple of the « persecuted motorists »).

Which structural processes produce environmental degradation? Examples of unjust transport planning. The car-dependent lifestyle, and the increased mobility and how it has led to isolating some people particularly the poor, elderly and children, who are restricted to a limited range of employment, shopping, health services and housing locations.

How does the layout/design of towns and cities significantly affect our travel choices and our ability to travel more in a more sustainable manner? Are the New Towns of the 1970s and the Eco-towns of today prime examples? The transport/land use design and urban design principles. How can an urban structure be flexible?

Public transport-oriented urban design and “social inclusion” through a plan to facilitate bus operations and pedestrian access. Are urban designs for public and private transport “diametrically opposed”? 21st-century environmental imperatives and the need to manage road congestion.

Is it possible to resolve design/ethical conflict by technical innovation and finance? Logistics of landlocked countries and those with access to the sea. Are innovative demand-responsive buses able to operate well for dispersed demand in low-density cities?

Transport Infrastructure and the separate study for roads, railways, bridges, tunnels, ports, maritime and inland water transport, airports, urban transport infrastructure (mass transit systems), dry ports and inland container depots (intermodal infrastructure), signage and traffic management systems.

The impressive macroeconomic facts about transport. Did the hope of resolving ethical dilemma through cash and clever technology fail entirely? The phenomenal growth of world trade and examples of successful Transport Infrastructure Development.

How is it possible to create freedom not to use the car? How the idea of improving bus services etc. is seen as separate from the overall transport system. What is environmentally irresponsible and socially divisive today?

Is there only one model for sustainable transport, built around the operational needs of high-capacity public transport systems? The model of liveable suburbia. Why is the design ethos of “the city built for the car” widely viewed with horror and derided?

Why are people petitioning against unsustainable measures? Security and Protection of assets: on physical assets, intellectual property and confidential data. Do we need an emphasis on local access, non-motorised trips, innovative public transport systems and packages of “smarter” measures (travel plans, public cars etc.)?

Long-term Sustainability and Transport Evaluation. Is it only about sustainable urban design and investment, or also about institutional, financial structures and regulation? Do our own institutional structures make sustainable innovation hard?

The many ways that transport can create Social Exclusion. Are environmental and social ethics around transport and urban design fudged and hidden within the professional/technical process? Internal Audit: Financial Controls, Operational Controls, Insight and Transparency.

The automotive and transportation industry as faced with an overwhelmingly complex set issues, ranging from EPA, FAA, DOT and other agency mandates, to physical security and other human capital challenges, amid a most difficult economic climate.

Health and Safety Investigations and Incident Tracking. Human resources and how to build a sustainable, ethical culture : on Discrimination / Wrongful Termination / Harassment / Unsafe working conditions / Wage and Hour Violations / Loss Prevention / Embezzlement / Fraud / Foreign corrupt practices.

Why is the concept of transport-demand management alien, threatening and viewed as a political con? Ethical challenges of transportation professionals, depending on whether they work for the public sector, the private sector, or as Expert Witnesses.

How do we get understanding and buy-in to transport solutions from a deeply cynical public? The Ethics of doing Transport Research. Could new technologies and different institutional structures play a role in resolving the ethical clashes?

On the Use of Transport Models. Should the opinion of the Target Group define solutions? How is it possible to achieve Safety? Indicators, Pricing Humans and Democracy.

Why is it that even if everyone admits that transport policies have important ethical dimensions, these have not been systematically explored? Scarcity of mobility: what should be the role of the market?

The importance of long-term social orientation – future decisions versus short-term profit motives. Should we test projects in transport infrastructure on a case-by-case basis? Considering the future costs of upkeep and maintenance.

Studying the Canons of Ethics for members of the ITE (Institute of Transportation Engineers). The standards of ethical conduct applied by DOT (Department of Transportation). Consequences of the fact that 60% of the world’s population is projected to live in cities by 2025.

Transport and city paralysis. Efficient transport systems and Cost Saving. Are reductions in greenhouse gas emissions feasible? On environment-friendly transport systems. Alternative forms of transport (intercity railways, urban mass-transit systems).

Gaps and deficiencies: the connectivity of hinterlands. Safety and reliability of transport systems. The potential role of transport in tackling rural and urban poverty. The price of motorized transport.

Transportation of dangerous goods, road-maritime transport safety. Traffic congestion and traffic accidents : on the millions killed and injured. Road design and road safety audits. On improvement of level crossings.

Investments in transport worldwide and investment requirements driven by living standards. Statistics. The rural access programmes of India and China and their consequences. Which (sub-)sectors of transport are “neglected” or privileged? On political will and collusion.

On the variety and consequences of funding options: – traditional and innovative public sector financing – loans by development banks – official development assistance – private sector involvement (different types) Decentralization and the new institutional challenges.

On regional cooperation and integration in TID. Bilateral and sub-regional agreements: are they consistent with conventions? Policy interventions in the land transport sector that are required for addressing various social and political inter-country challenges. The Euro-Asian Transport linkages.

Study of some Sub-regional intergovernmental organizations, their role and function: ASEAN / ECO / Pacific Islands Forum / SAARC / SCO/ CIS/ (IGC- TRACECA). Their agreements, debates and visions. The need to strengthen the institutional framework for regional cooperation.

The case of the Shipping Industry: – environmental issues – cargo concerns – questionable goods by-passing authorities and vehicle scans – hours of operation – meeting deadlines and their human victims – on-the-job injuries – benefits & insurance – economic growth and competition between ways to transport goods. Dying industries and the use of air cargo. International sea-pirate threats.

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