Modelling Changes in Regional Accessibility from Speed Limit Adjustments in the Road Network : A report from the Nordic research project E12 Atlantica BA3NET

The Swedish Transport Administration will adjust the speed limits in the Swedish road network. A point of departure for this adjustment is Vision Zero, a traffic safety project approved by the Swedish Parliament in 1997. The goal of Vision Zero is a radical reduction of the number of fatalities or serious injuries on Swedish roads. However, the suggested new speed limits have given rise to debate and criticism. Regional and local actors have argued that a reduced speed limit may have negative impacts on accessibility and local development. The road network in the Botnia-Atlantica region contains roads where the Transport Administration has suggested reduced speed limits. Sections of the TEN-T E12 road and connecting nearby roads are parts of those roads. The illustrative cases chosen are a part of the E12-region around the city Umeå in Sweden. The purpose of the paper is to present a method for analysis of the distribution of changed accessibility over places, in response to changed speed limit in the road network. The suggested method should be a basis for a dialogue on accessibility and security between local and regional actors on one hand and the Swedish Transport administration on the other. Accessibility although is a multifaceted phenomenon. The impact of changed accessibility on an economy both contains general elements as well as elements of very situation specific character. Given this, the modelling approach suggested make use of three different model approaches; EVA, SAMPERS and PIPOS. The comparison of outcomes from the three models gives an in-depth picture of how changes in speed limits affect accessibility and regional development.E12 Atlantica BA3NE