'The Effectiveness of Speed Cameras' is the subject of a report by Professor Richard Allsopp, published in November.  The report has generated considerable interest and discussion and key conclusions are that

• eight hundred more people could be killed or seriously injured if all the fixed and mobile cameras operational before the road safety grant was cut in summer 2010 were switched off
• the benefits are realised across the road network and not just at camera sites
• only a small proportion of the penalty payments goes to the Treasury and there is no surplus for local authorities or the police.

'The Case for High Speed Rail: An Update', published in December, reports further assessment by Professor John Preston.  This strengthens concerns that the HSR as proposed will divert scarce funds from alternative transport projects offering higher benefits, that it will not deliver the green benefits originally identified and that it will predominantly serve the better off without any contribution to reducing social exclusion.
 
'Market Delivery of Ultra-Low Carbon Vehicles in the UK' by Ben Lane, published last month, addresses the promotion of the green agenda.   The report finds compelling evidence that showroom incentives, rather than reduced rates of so-called circulation taxes like VED, will be critical to persuading drivers to buy the new generation of green vehicles which are currently – and in the short to medium term are expected to remain – much more expensive then equivalent petrol and diesel models.

'Road Sharing  Does it matter what road users think of each other?' by Simon Christmas and Shaun Helman, published in January, looks at how different groups of road users – eg motorists, cyclists – think about one another and how this influences behaviour.  Increasing pressure on road space means that interaction between groups can become more critical in its implications for safety.  This report sets out some ground work on theoretical foundations which provide a basis for progressing the topic.

More on these reports can be found on the Foundation’s website www.racfoundation.org ; see Media for news releases or Research for the reports.