1 thomas b fischer, dimensions and context the dimensions and context of transport decision making...

1 Thomas B Fischer, dimensions and context

The Dimensions and Context of Transport Decision Making

15 March 2010

Thomas B FischerDepartment of Civic Design

Contents• Introduction

• Hypothesis and approach

• The ‘structuredness’ of different types of transport decision making and associated acting strategies (context)

• How does decision making work?

• Contingency model of organisational decision making

• Towards the development of a situation-driven approach for the selection of indicators

• Some dimensions characterising decision making situations

• Survey Percentage of documents that use an indicator (for different tiers) Why do you think indicators were used for climate change, air pollution,

noise pollution, and habitat loss?

• Conclusions


Introduction

• Aim is to empirically test theoretical thinking on situation specific indicator selection (based on survey).


Hypothesis and approach

• A good understanding of the dimensions and context of transport decision making can support the choice of environmental indicators.

• An analytical rather than descriptive approach is taken and recommendations are given on how the transport decision making situation might help to prescribe the choice of specific environmental indicators.


The ‘structuredness’ of different types of transport

decision making and associated acting strategies


Types of policy problems

+ Consensus on knowledge -

moderately structured

(consensus of goals)

problem

particulate matter

Advocate

structured problem

road maintenance

Problem Solver

moderately structured

(consensus on means)

problem

abortion, euthanasia

Mediator

unstructured problem

climate change

Problem recogniser

Policy

?

PlanSEA: Sreening, scoping

impact assessment, Consultation / participation

Monitoring / follow up

ProgrammeSEA: Sreening, scoping

impact assessment, Consultation / participation

Monitoring / follow up

Knowledge (technical context)

Conflicts

Degree of communication(role of planner)

The ‘structuredness’ of different types of transport

decision making and associated acting strategies

• similar suggestions also made in the environmental indicator literature.

• Lehtonen (2009), referring to the energy sector connected the purpose of indicators with the stage of policy making. For first three policy stages ( ‘emergence of the

problem’, ‘legitimisation’ and ‘mobilisation of the public for action’), he suggested that the role of indicators would be of a discursive nature. At the following two stages ‘formation of an official plan of action’ and ‘implementation of the plan’, he suggested that whether the role of indicators is more of an instrumental/rational or ‘political’ nature depends on whether there is overall consensus (the former) or controversy (the latter).


How does decision making work?

• Rational model Indicators with decision making function

• Bounded rational model More ad-hoc indicator usage

• Garbage can model four independent streams:problems, solutions, participants, and choice opportunities

Effective role of indicators? – only genric measurement?

• Political or coalition approach• Communicative planning


Contingency model of organisational decision

making


Means uncertainty

Ends

uncertainty

Computationrationalcrisp

Judgementbounded rationalfuzzier

Inspirationgarbage canfuzziest

Bargainingcoalitionfuzzier

Towards the development of a situation-driven approach for the selection of indicators

• Approaches: Theory driven Data drive Politically driven



Stra

t-e

gic P

lan

s (ta

ctical)

Pro

gra

mm

es

Roa

d

Rail

Wate

r

Air

Mo

de

s a

nd

ge

og

-ra

ph

ica

l bo

un

da

ries

Dec

ision

Ma

kin

g T

ier

NG

Os

Privatein

stitution

s

Scie

ntific

comm

unity

Th

e p

ub

lic

Fo

rmal

req

uire

-m

en

ts

La

w

Gu

id-

an

ce

Sp

atia

l sc

aleo

f imp

ac

tsIntern

atio

na

l/

glo

bal

Reg

ion

al

Lo

cal

Inter-m

od

al

Pro

jects

Po

licy

cy

cle

Use

rs /

sta

ke

ho

lders

Inve

stors

Fre

ight a

nd

pa

sseng

er

asso

ciation

s

1 A

ge

nd

asettin

g2

Ô P

olicy

Õ

form

ula

tion

(assessmen

t)3

De

cision

ma

king4

Imp

lem

-e

nta

tion

5 a

na

lysis and

eva

lua

tion

Natio

nal

(ava

ilab

lein

stru

me

nts

)

Situ

atio

ns

pe

cific

ind

ica

tors

= ca

teg

ories

= system

ic

Ô laye

rs

Õ

= crite

ria

CO

2

Tota

lla

nd tak

eN

MV

-O

Cn

oise

Tim

e

Lo

ngm

ed

ium

short

Ad

min

-istrative

un

its

Fu

nctio

n-al u

nits

Le

ve

lo

fa

gg

-re

g-atio

n

pro

fessions

Some dimensions characterising decision making situations

• Survey on 21 transport policies, plans, programmes and projects were presented, using five situational factors, including: the decision making tier the stage of the decision making cycle the administrative level the instruments transport modes

• indicators for four environmental issues were considered; climate change, air pollution, noise pollution and habitats loss.


Towards the development of a situation-driven approach for the selection of indicators

Percentage of documents that use an indicator (for

different tiers)


Why do you think indicators were used for climate change, air

pollution, noise pollution, and habitat loss?


Conclusions

• Only the decision tier appeared to play a clear role in indicator selection.

• The more geographically limited impacts of noise and air pollution were more frequently considered at programme and project levels than at policy and plan levels of decision making.

• However, this wasn’t the only factor able to explain the choice of indicators and there appeared to be an overlap with other factors.

• It was suggested that these may include in particular the political dimension, as climate change was an issue consistently considered at all levels.


1 thomas b fischer, dimensions and context the dimensions and context of transport decision making...

Documents

contextthomas b fischer

contextthe dimensions

purpose of indicators

situationdriven approach

indicator usagegarbage

different tierswhy

acting strategies contexthow

descriptive approach