ABSTRACT
At the time of writing, the world is reeling from the shock of a global pandemic, and the transport sector finds itself in a state of flux. Even before the pandemic, there were signs of regime change in mobility. The future of mobility is uncertain, yet it looks set to be significantly different to that which has to date been dominated by the private car. Indeed, it needs to be different if transport is to drastically reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Amidst all this, what is the outlook for public transport? This chapter examines this by considering ‘public transport’s four futures’: the future of the planet, the future of society, the future of mobility and the future of public transport itself. Planning for the future of public transport must recognise and account for all four. In considering all four, it must be vision led while also taking account of the uncertainty faced to ensure decisions being made today to shape public transport are resilient to future circumstances.
