ABSTRACT

In the previous two chapters, the findings of the main empirical work were described. This chapter provides an examination of the perceptions held by some of the research participants of how transport impacts on their lives. In contrast to the previous two chapters which examined the observable direct impacts of particular policies and interventions in terms of the pattern of outcomes, this chapter makes use of a new exploratory tool which better reveals the more basic ways in which transport may affect day-to-day living as seen through the eyes of each participant within a wider social and neighbourhood context. Thus, while the last two chapters concentrate on the information gathered through semi-structured interviews, focus groups and analysis of web-based conversation, this chapter describes an experimental demonstration study of the use of Q methodology to investigate perceptions of transport’s impacts on an individual’s life.