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Short abstract:

This paper shows how Martha Nussbaum's Capabilities Approach can widen existing approaches to assess social and ethical impacts in transport planning, using a case study on urban traffic calming and reduction of parking spaces.

Long abstract:

In evaluations of mobility innovations and policies, technical and economic parameters have long been in the foreground. “Sustainability" is a goal for transport development, but is usually limited to the reduction of emissions, energy consumption and waste of space. In contrast, social and further ethical impacts of transport infrastructure have received less attention.

Accessibility is currently proposed as a concept to assess social and ethical impacts in transport planning. Currently, however, accessibility implies a rather narrow focus on a small range of social aspects, like access to job opportunities.

In this context, the Capabilities Approach (CA) has been suggested as a more comprehensive approach. It provides a normative framework for evaluating social arrangements based on the freedoms that people need to realize a good life. It puts emphasis on how infrastructures and related services contribute to people’s opportunities and wellbeing.

In this contribution, we show that Martha Nussbaum’s ‘central capabilities’ provide a normative guidance for developing more specific transport-related indicators. The CA widens impact assessment from people’s mobility and accessibility to include other direct and indirect impacts of transport measures on, e.g., health, safety, and the environment.

To apply the CA, we need a better understanding of the interrelations between mobility infrastructures and central capabilities and more clarity on the appropriate spatial and administrative level of application. Taking a specific example (urban traffic calming and reduction of parking spaces), we investigate how the CA can be used successfully for sustainable mobility planning.