Framework for Developing Indicators of Sustainability for Transportation Planning

Abstract

With the pressure of rising energy prices comes an increased interest in sustainability and sustainable planning. Due to its numerous environmental, social and economic impacts, transportation has gained attention as a logical starting point for achieving sustainability. A comprehensive definition of sustainability is multidimensional and takes into account a variety of issues including environmental conservation, social equity and economic profitability. Because “what gets measured gets done” it is important for a community to track their progress towards or away from sustainability. This is done through the use of indicators of sustainable transportation. The work that focuses specifically on transportation and sustainability is relatively new and is still evolving. As such, there is no established set of indicators for assessing transportation for sustainability goals, nor are there guidelines for developing such indicators. Our research examines the various conceptualizations of sustainability, which we used to guide the development of a comprehensive definition of sustainable transportation. We then reviewed the different styles of existing transportation indicator frameworks and built on this work to propose a framework for developing sustainable transportation indices.

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