Rural Transportation Needs

Transport and accessibility problems in rural Australia are characterised by little or no public transport, very high levels of car ownership, and poor service provision. Currently the rationalisation process has intensified the problem of accessibility and mobility for transport- disadvantaged groups in rural areas. Using GIS, this book examines transport needs in rural NSW by measuring demand and supply components of transport. For demand side some socio- economic characteristics of population, and for supply side some components which represent the availability of transport in rural NSW are involved. This book also discusses the potential and limitations of GIS and our transport need indices to be used as input to decisions about improvements in provision of services, and coordination of existing services to better meet identified needs in rural areas. While the book is about Australia, its methods and indices can be applied elsewhere. So it is an important source of ideas, methods and discussions for geographers, sociologists, transport authorities, rural and regional planners.