Park and Ride schemes using dedicated bus services have become particularly popular
over the last 40 years with UK policymakers. This popularity can largely be attributed
to the UK policy context and the advocating of Park and Ride to tackle increasing car
use, congestion and traffic-related emissions. The aim of this paper is to use existing
evidence on the degree to which this has been achieved and provide lessons on how
bus-based Park and Ride can be used effectively. From this, lessons are provided that
will benefit stakeholders internationally on the use of dedicated link-mode Park and
Ride schemes operating at the edge of urban areas. It is found that although Park and
Ride has been popular amongst motorists, it has also attracted users of existing public
transport services and has generated additional trips, resulting in a counter-productive
effect. It is concluded that for Park and Ride to be successful, it should be
implemented in tandem with other supply-side measures and alongside sufficiently
rigorous restraint instruments. Also, despite the use of frequent and dedicated bus-link
services providing a key feature that attracts motorists who would not otherwise use
public transport, their use needs to be carefully monitored to avoid low load-factors
decreasing levels of efficiency.
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Citation
MEEK, S., ISON, S.G. and ENOCH, M., 2008. Park and ride: Lessons from the UK experience. Transportation Research Board 87th Annual Meeting, 13-17 January 2008, Washington DC., Paper No. 08-0730