Research Projects on Transport and Infrastructure

  • Engineer with blueprints inspects construction process on railway, photo by APchanel/Adobe Stock

    Understanding how rail construction affects mental health and wellbeing

    18 Nov 2021

    Researchers are exploring how the UK's High-Speed Rail 2 development might affect people who live near the railway line. What they learn will contribute to the design and assessment of later phases of the HS2 scheme.

  • High speed train at the railway station at sunset, photo by den-belitsky/Adobe Stock

    Decarbonising UK transport

    15 Jul 2021

    A series of seven roadmaps for decarbonising domestic transport in the UK informed the UK Government’s 2021 Transport Decarbonisation Plan. These roadmaps address: cars and light goods vehicles; buses; coaches; heavy goods vehicles; rail; domestic shipping; and domestic aviation

  • Rear view of group seated in striped deckchairs at the seaside on a sunny summer day, photo by Ian/Adobe Stock

    Understanding the reasons for domestic tourism

    15 Jul 2021

    Domestic tourism benefits both the broader UK economy as well as businesses within a specific destination. To help understand the factors that influence people’s decisions to take domestic holidays, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) commissioned RAND Europe to examine the impact of publicly funded domestic tourism marketing.

  • Electric vehicle at charging station, photo by scharfsinn86 J&K/Adobe Stock

    Identifying patterns and factors affecting adoption of electric vehicles across the UK

    01 Mar 2021

    Researchers examined patterns of electric vehicles adoption across the country to help locate areas where investment in electric repair and servicing skills is needed.

  • Traffic on the streets of London

    Developing a New Transport Demand Model for the London Area

    01 Mar 2021

    With rising populations in London leading to higher demand on road and transport networks, Transport for London asked researchers to develop a new strategic travel model for London, which will be used to develop strategic land use and transport policy scenarios to assist with future investment in London’s transport systems.

  • Rush hour on the A38(M) urban motorway at Aston, Birmingham, UK.

    A review of induced travel demand

    28 Nov 2018

    Through an extensive literature review, researchers found evidence that road capacity improvements result in induced travel demand, but most of the evidence came from large metropolitan areas outside the UK. More evidence from local studies would be helpful to ensure induced travel demand is properly accounted for in appraisal of capacity improvements to the UK's Strategic Road Network.

  • A New Transport Model for South East Wales

    18 Sep 2018

    RAND Europe researchers developed models capable of predicting levels of transport demand in South East Wales in response to a range of different policy options and in light of demographic changes.

  • Container ships in a port at sunset

    Improved connectivity would benefit China's BRI

    08 Aug 2018

    Trade routes developed as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) aim to promote regional cooperation in Asia, Europe, and Africa. Improving multimodal transport infrastructure and connectivity in the BRI region would likely benefit all partners, and rail improvements would have the greatest impact.

  • Buses in Buchanan Bus Station in Glasgow, Scotland

    More data needed on bus demand elasticities and diversion factors

    09 Jul 2018

    To plan and invest appropriately, policymakers need to understand the impact of price, journey time and other variables on bus passenger demand. More research and data are needed to help future policy efforts, according to a review of the evidence.

  • Google's self-driving car

    Would the EU Benefit from Common Liability Rules for Autonomous Vehicles?

    20 Apr 2018

    Researchers explored the potential impacts of AVs on European car manufacturers, the insurance industry, connected industries and markets, and those who provide public provision of services and supervise compliance.

  • H.C. Andersens Boulevard - January Evening in Copenhagen

    Quantifying travellers’ willingness to pay for a tolled tunnel in central Copenhagen

    21 Mar 2018

    Stated choice experiments helped researchers quantify the willingness of car and van travellers to pay to use a proposed new tunnel to cross to and from Amager in central Copenhagen. The results from this study will inform the Danish Road Directorate's proposed new infrastructure.

  • Updating the UK National Car Ownership Model

    22 Dec 2017

    The UK car ownership model was known to over-predict car ownership in dense urban areas, particularly London. In re-estimating the UK's current car ownership models using more recent data, researchers made improvements to the model specifications.

  • Trucks and port infrastructure, Sao Francisco do Sul, Brazil. July 2006

    Supporting Brazilian Regulation to Encourage Private Investment

    09 May 2017

    Regulatory frameworks enable a business environment that encourages private investment. Researchers prepared a roadmap for logistics infrastructure investments for the Brazilian Ministries of Planning and Finance.

  • Class 395 "Javelin" high-speed train operated by Southeastern, at Ebbsfleet International

    Understanding the Demand for Rail Travel in the UK

    27 Apr 2017

    An analysis of the National Travel Survey allowed researchers to quantify the impact of external socio-economic factors on rail demand. Application of the improved models for forecasting purposes requires the collation of socio-economic and demographic forecast data at an appropriately granular level.

  • Autonomous self-driving driverless vehicle with radar on the road

    Examining Future Transport Scenarios to Drive Innovation in the UK

    24 Jun 2016

    The UK’s roads, railways and airports are some of the most congested in the world. RAND Europe, in collaboration with Risk Solutions, explored how emerging technologies might make the transport system more efficient and effective by the year 2035.

  • An approximate view of the London Commuter Belt showing commuter towns and the main road and rail links into the city. Urban areas in and around London are grey.

    Developing a New National Transport Model for the UK

    15 Mar 2016

    At the request of the Department for Transport, RAND Europe and Atkins are updating the UK's national transport model using current datasets. The project team may also suggest further enhancements to improve the forecasting functionality and/or consistency of the model.

  • electric car plugged in to wall

    What Factors Affect the Wider Adoption of Electric Vehicles?

    22 Feb 2012

    To understand the factors affecting the wider adoption of electric vehicles, RAND Europe sponsored a project to review the barriers and relevant government interventions. The project team conducted a survey to determine the potential uptake of electric vehicles within a municipality, using Cambridge, UK, as a case study.