TOWARDS A MORE FUNDAMENTAL TRANSPORT POLICY: AN INVENTORY OF TRENDS THAT INFLUENCE THE TRANSPORT PATTERNS IN WESTERN EUROPE AND THEIR IMPLICATION FOR POLICY MAKING

Abstract: The success of transportation is partly a derived effect of the fulfilling of all sorts of needs, varying from economic needs to social needs. The success is also the result of continuous technological innovations. At the same time, the success creates significant negative external effects. Thus, there is a need for a sustainable transport policy that pays attention to the balance between needs and sustainability requirements. So, as transport is the result of a derived demand, it is also needed that there is a better understanding of the societal, economic, and technological trends that will influence the transport patterns and their implication for policy making. This paper presents an inventory of the trends, places these trends in a policy context, and comes forward with recommendations for sustainable policy making for the transport sector in the future. The emphasis will be mainly on experiences in Western Europe. The transferability is briefly discussed