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Article
A justice-theoretic approach to the distribution of transportation benefits: Implications for transportation planning practice in the United States
World Transit Research
  • Karel Martens
  • Aaron Golub
  • Glenn Robinson
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
1-1-2012
Keywords
  • Justice,
  • Equity,
  • Access,
  • Walzer,
  • Rawls
Abstract

Transportation improvements inevitably lead to an uneven distribution of user benefits, in space and by network type (private and public transport). This paper makes a moral argument for what would be a fair distribution of these benefits. The argument follows Walzer’s “Spheres of Justice” approach to define the benefits of transportation, access, as a sphere deserving a separate, non-market driven, distribution. That distribution, we propose, is one where the maximum gap between the lowest and highest accessibility, both by mode and in space, should be limited, while attempting to maximize average access. We then review transportation planning practice for a priori distributional goals and find little explicit guidance in conventional and even justice-oriented transportation planning and analyses. We end with a discussion of the implications for practice.

Rights
Permission to publish the abstract has been given by Elsevier, copyright remains with them.
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Transportation Research Part A Home Page:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/09658564

Citation Information
Martins, K., Golub, A., & Robinson, G. (2012). A justice-theoretic approach to the distribution of transportation benefits: Implications for transportation planning practice in the United States. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Vol. 46, (4), pp. 684-695.