Active Travel: A Contentious Business

Abstract

Through a series of interviews with small business owners in case study areas adjacent to recently built active travel infrastrucuture in North London, this paper identifies the challenges that these businesses can face, primarily from reduced customer parking as well as logistical difficulties regarding deliveries. Comparing to previous case studies, the paper identifies how existing literiture which finds great economic benefits to reduction in motor traffic may not apply to smaller, residential areas which are not central shopping destinations, particularly if the overall amount of traffic of all modes which passes through falls dramatically, as was the case in the Low Traffic Neighbourhood case study areas. The paper also identifies the key concerns and difficulties which business owners face regarding the implementation of change and lack of meaningful participation in planning processes, some of which used emergency powers to bypass usual steps.