Project provides updated perspective on the transportation-land use system and the role of public transit within it

The December 2021 final report for “An Integrated Approach to Transit System Evolution,” a Knowledge Synthesis Grants project co-funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and Infrastructure Canada (INFC), is now available.

This knowledge synthesis project provides an up-to-date perspective on the transportation-land use system and the role of public transit within it. To do so, we first revisit the core works that inform the ways in which we think about the transportation-land use connection in cities. Second, we review recent literature on new transportation technologies and trends associated with the COVID-19 pandemic with a focus on how they have changed, and may potentially change, the transportation-land use connection. Third, we complete the synthesis of previous works through a reinterpretation of the transportation-land use connection through the lens of new technology to provide a conceptual basis for more integrated systems planning. In addition to the review activities, the project benefits from the co-creation of knowledge facilitated through three workshops with public, private, and not-for-profit sector stakeholders. – excerpt from “An Integrated Approach to Transit System Evolution” final report

The project was awarded funding in June 2021 and examined the transportation-land use system and the role of public transit within it, using four major perspectives:

  1. Revisiting the Transportation-Land Use Connection
  2. New Technologies, Trends and the Transport-Land Use System
  3. Reinterpreting Transport and Land Use for Future Integrated Systems Planning
  4. Towards Future Integrated Systems Planning

Principal Investigator Professor Christopher Higgins led interactive workshops on September 10, November 12, and December 3, 2021 as part of the project. The support of workshop participants is acknowledged in the final report which states that “input and feedback from attendees … was crucial for contextualizing and co-creating this synthesis.”

Higgins will share the project’s research, findings, and policy implications at the Mobility & Public Transit virtual forum presented by SSHRC in collaboration with INFC in a session on January 27, 2022.

The Mobility & Public Transit virtual forum will bring together leading researchers and cross-sectoral policy-makers to discuss research findings that can inform the development of effective tools, policies and practices to support the transit needs of urban and rural communities across Canada. It will feature presentations sharing the results of 23 recently completed projects under the Knowledge Synthesis Grants on Mobility and Public Transit, as part of SSHRC’s Imagining Canada’s Future initiative.

About “An Integrated Approach to Transit System Evolution”

Understanding the role of public transit in the wider transport-land use system of great importance for guiding effective policy and planning at all levels of government. While it is widely recognized that transit performs best when closely integrated with land use planning, recent transformational trends including new mobility technologies and the COVID-19 pandemic are fundamentally altering the way we think about transportation and land use interaction in cities. In response, this project seeks to conduct a targeted literature review and synthesis that revisits core theories, reviews recent research, and reinterprets the transportation-land use relationship in light of the challenges and opportunities that have occurred and are likely to occur over the next decade in Canadian communities.

“An Integrated Approach to Transit System Evolution” is supported by Co-PIs Professors Eric MillerSteven FarberAmer Shalaby, and Khandker Nurul Habib; collaborators Professors Shauna Brail, Sara Diamond (OCAD U), Michael Widener, and Antonio Páez (McMaster); and research assistants Billy Zhang and Yixue Zhang.

About Knowledge Synthesis Grants

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) collaborated with Infrastructure Canada to launch a Knowledge Synthesis Grants competition on mobility and public transit in 2020 to examine and synthesize existing knowledge on mobility and public transit issues.

Knowledge syntheses are comprehensive analyses of literature and other forms of knowledge on a particular question or issue. Knowledge Synthesis Grants are intended to support the synthesis of existing research knowledge and the identification of knowledge gaps. This call was particularly focused on the state of research knowledge emerging over the past 10 years.

Read the report

UTTRI Research Report cover page for Integrated Approach to Transit System EvolutionHiggins, Christopher D., Steven Farber, Amer Shalaby, Khandker Nurul Habib, Eric J. Miller, Shauna Brail, Michael J. Widener, Sara Diamond, Antonio Páez, Billy Zhang, Yixue Zhang, Matt Palm, Ignacio Tiznado-Aitken, “An Integrated Approach to Transit System Evolution,” December 2021.