Analysing passenger transport energy consumption from travel survey data : a case study of Nelson Mandela Metropolitan area

Abstract

Paper presented at the 28th Annual Southern African Transport Conference 6 - 9 July 2009 "Sustainable Transport", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.

Energy consumption is emerging as a major area of public and political concern worldwide. The need for local and metropolitan authorities in South Africa to consider energy more explicitly in the developing of their transport plans is growing. As strategies to reduce or manage energy consumption are developed, better data is needed to monitor and predict energy consumption impacts both at the regional and household levels. In addition, a better understanding of energy consumption patterns, and the socio-economic, land use, and transport-related factors that accompany these, will be needed. The paper reports on a study with a two-fold objective: to develop and test a methodology to measure transportation energy consumption at a spatially disaggregate level; and to explore the impact of various socio-economic and land use factors on transport energy use. The data is from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Area Travel Survey, a 24-hour survey conducted in 2004. The focus is on passenger travel by all modes. Preliminary findings include a significant direct relationship between motor ownership and energy consumption. Moreover, statistical analyses suggest relatively weak relationships between land use factors, such as population and job densities, and transport energy consumption. These findings suggest that a reduction in energy consumption might be achieved more effectively through car use limitation than through slower-paced changes in land use.