Helen Hamlyn Research Centre

Centre for Inclusive Design

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Mobility

Some key facts about mobility

At Age 10 - only one in ten children walk or cycle to school, whereas nine in ten are escorted, mainly travelling by car, a reversal of the situation a generation ago
At Age 17 - provisional license available
At Age 45 - average age of the private purchaser of new cars
At Age 55 - there are eight million drivers who are 55+
At Age 70 - driving licences have to be renewed every three years
At Age 70 - 53% of men over 75 and 12% of women currently hold driving licences

Some key facts about London

73% of Londoners dissatisfied with traffic conditions
32% dissatisfied with the Underground
34% dissatisfied with buses
36% dissatisfied with National Rail
88% want environmental improvement
57% think London is an unhealthy place to live
By 2011, car ownership in London will have increased by 10%, and use of public transport by 15%. This is due to an increase in population and wealth, especially in Central London
Other drivers of change include new economies based on information technology and electronic communications. Whilst reducing commuter numbers by teleworking and video conferencing, there is evidence of increased vehicle traffic through additional deliveries of internet-ordered items
Out of the whole of the UK, Londoners take the longest time to travel the shortest distance
13 of the 20 most deprived districts in the UK are in London, mostly concentrated towards the eastern side
London has 12% of the population, but contributes 20% of the nations GDP
Young peoples' mobility concerns include: detrimental effect of pollution on health; need to reduce speed limits; personal security on public transport
An older person's mobility concerns typically include: inaccessibility of the Underground system, trains and buses; transport design and practice that do not allow for those with limited mobility
Pedestrians and cyclists account for more than half of road fatalities
One million work in Central London and almost all do not live there
Public transport fares have increased rapidly over the last 15 years with an increase in crowding and unreliability
Motoring costs have remained the same with an increase in comfort and reliability
The half a million people who are physically disabled or have health problems are largely excluded by present public transport options as are people with children, older people and people with large or heavy loads

An important strand of the Helen Hamlyn Research Associates Programme is dedicated to new design on mobility for all. A selection of design projects is shown below:

Instinctive wayfinding at Heathrow airport

In 2000, Karen Adcock & Carl Turner of Architecture & Interiors looked at improving wayfinding in airports, in partnership with BAA

Transport typologies for the future city

In 2001, Shaun Hutchinson of Vehicle Design looked at public / private transport needs, in partnership with Ford

Links to relevant external web sites can be found on our links pages

(Sources: Moving On, Transport Conference, March 2000; The Mayor's Transport Strategy, Greater London Authority)

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