Decision Support Tools - Thematic Research Summary - Transport ...

transport infrastructure development in the MEDA 11 area to ensure a better integration oftransport networks in the Mediterranean area (MEDA TEN-T, 2006).A second group of objectives has been concerned with approaches for assessing thesustainability of transport policy as well as quality of life issues. Research was motivatedby the fact that policy makers must face the challenging task of developing transportpolicies capable of providing the right trade-off between satisfying the increasing demandfor transport and mobility and reducing the negative transport impacts by developingsustainable transport systems. Furthermore, tools currently available to evaluate theeffectiveness of transport policies are still inadequate. Their main weakness include badlinks between transport models and sustainability indicators, incompleteness, and reducedcapability in assessing cumulative and cross-over effects caused by the implementation ofpackages of measures. As a consequence, research has developed a consistentframework for the assessment of policy options for promoting sustainable transport andmobility (SUMMA, 2005), and a consistent and comprehensive approach and planningmethodology for the analysis of urban transportation problems, that helps to designstrategies for sustainable cities (SUTRA, 2005). Research has also made a contribution tothe development of a comprehensive methodology for assessing the impact of varioustransport policies and strategies on sustainability, which allows a solution to the aforementionedweaknesses (REFIT, 2008).Quality of Life (QoL) of citizens significantly depends on transport and mobility. Appropriateassessment of transport policies from the point of view of the impacts on QoL of citizens isimportant for an effective and efficient transport planning because of the increase in theacceptability of measures. In this respect, it is crucial that there is a good level ofcommunication between decision makers and users in order to properly take into accountthe needs and interests of the segments of the population affected by the implementationof a specific transport measure. Therefore, research has investigated the extent to whichpolicy makers take into account QoL effects of implemented policies and measures andthe development of tools to assess such effects (ASI, 2005).A third group of objectives has been concerned with the development of a methodology fora common evaluation of transport measures implemented by a cluster of projects. Thedevelopment of such a methodology has been necessary to evaluate the impacts of the212 transport measures implemented within the CIVITAS I Initiative 12 (METEOR, 2006).11 The MEDA programme is the EU main financial instrument for the implementation ofthe Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.12 Launched by DG-TREN from 2002 to 2005 this initiative has involved 19 cities.Thematic Research Summary: “Decision Support Tools” Page: 44 of 74Transport Research Knowledge Centre