Thinking outside the box

14 November 2017

Applying best practice in public transport planning to an urban ferry system

Sydney’s ferry system is a much loved part of the city’s public transport network. But is there a way to make ferries more useful for customers and to have them operate at less cost to the taxpayer? Robin Sandell provides his thoughts.

26 October 2017

Corridor protection for infrastructure and transport

Peter Thornton explains that we need to get beyond 'planning by marginal electorates' if a truly national infrastructure agenda is to be delivered on time and on budget.

03 October 2017

Road pricing reform – a getting started idea

While it is recognised that road pricing reform is necessary to tame traffic congestion to acceptable levels, the challenge is how to demonstrate the merits of a reform scheme without requiring a total system implementation.

31 August 2017

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) and modal capacity shortfall

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is talked about a lot as the new approach to delivering transport services that are better tailored to the needs of travellers, as it gives modal flexibility under various pricing offers. David Hensher explains further.

31 July 2017

Sharing must work in a transport future

Transport in the future is predicated on technology change and a willingness to participate in collaborative consumption. This includes citizens’ attitudes towards transport assets (particularly cars). Read what Corinne Mulley and John Nelson have to say.

12 July 2017

The high cost of housing and how to reduce it

In this article, Michael Bell investigates whether the current high cost of housing in Australian cities like Melbourne, and especially Sydney, is caused by excessive demand or insufficient supply.

28 June 2017

Shrinking supply chains, greater welfare?

Recent tectonic shifts in the global economy are challenging the ocean container shipping sector. In this Thinking Outside the Box piece, Michael Bell considers the welfare implications of shrinking supply chains.

14 June 2017

Autonomous cars: placing them in context

The Roads Australia National Conference in Sydney had many presentations on autonomous cars (ACs); and despite some suggesting we should soon go directly to level 5 fully autonomous cars, some of us question this. David Hensher and John Stanley give their insights.

31 May 2017

What can be done to improve commercial viability of regional aviation in NSW/Australia?

With continued volatility in the resources sector and tourism being inherently seasonal, soft demand from regional and business communities has unsurprisingly resulted in lower profit margins for regional airlines. Professor Rico Merkert explains further.

27 April 2017

Toll roads – a view after 25 years

Tolled roads in Australia have been around now for over 25 years (excluding bridge crossings) and have created camps of supporters and dissenters. Have they delivered value for money? David Hensher shares his thoughts.