Learning from Experience: Lessons for a Better Transport Future with Associate Professor Peter Norton, USA

About this event

AITPM and the Heart Foundation co-hosted a special presentation with Peter Norton, Associate Professor of History in the Department of Engineering and Society at the University of Virginia (USA), and renowned author of Fighting Traffic: The Dawn of the Motor Age in the American City and Autonorama: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving.

The session provided valuable insights for professionals interested in applying a people-first approach to transport and traffic policy and projects. It highlighted how reallocating public space can embed community health and wellbeing into transport outcomes while also addressing traffic congestion, urban sprawl, and climate change.

Peter shared his expertise on the history of road use and made the case for adopting a road use hierarchy that prioritises walking, wheeling, bike riding, and public transport.

Attendees gained a deeper understanding of the importance of this framework and how its principles can be practically applied in their work.

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Presentation Synopsis

Learning from Experience: Lessons for a Better Transport Future 

When will we finally have all the technology we need for safe, efficient and sustainable everyday transport? The bad news is that tech can’t solve all our transport problems. But there’s good news too: If we stop letting futuristic tech distract us, we will find that we have everything we need already. Our ancestors followed simple rules of thumb: High-speed travel doesn’t mix with local access. Walkability, cycling and transit are essential parts of any everyday transport system. Proximity makes everything easier. The street systems of a century ago were not perfect, but they were the product of centuries of accumulated experience. In the pursuit of ubiquitous car mobility we lost much of this hard-earned wisdom. Cars are useful tools and can serve us better if we have good alternatives. By giving people good choices besides driving, we reduce congestion for those who must drive. If we recover lost experience, we can use it improve transport for all, making our shared future safer, healthier, more sustainable and more livable.