Spatio-temporal analysis of the modal disparities in public and private motorized transport: how equitable is public transport distribution in Flanders, Belgium?

In answer to the economic, environmental and social externalities associated with car-oriented developments, strengthening the position of public transportation has received a growing policy and academic interest. In addition, increasing the attractiveness of public transport benefits transport-related equity, as more opportunities are made accessible to population segments unable to commute by car. To date, however, research in this domain has primarily addressed the spatial distribution of the modal disparity in access by public and private motorized transport, while its temporal variability has received little attention. Based on the recent endeavors in computing time-continuous accessibility levels, the spatial as well as temporal modal disparity in access to job locations is calculated for the region of Flanders, Belgium. Therefore, the public transport provision is compared to the access by car at regular time intervals during a predefined time window (5 am U+2013 11 pm). The results show that the largest part of the considered area has insufficient provision to employment through public transport in comparison to the access by car. Understanding the spatiotemporal complexity of transit provision is crucial in identifying areas characterized by inadequate access to employment and encouraging mode shifts to diminish car dependency.