Browse by: "2022"

This report examines strategies to improve accessibility and mobility by integrating land-use and transport policies. It outlines the institutional and legal aspects of ensuring such integration. It also discusses mechanisms for steering new development to locations served by sustainable modes of transport and promoting compact, transit-oriented development. The report draws on discussions among experts at an ITF Roundtable held on 17 and 18 November 2021.

Current mobility patterns in Ireland are incompatible with the country’s target to halve emissions in the transport sector by 2030. While important, electrification and fuel efficiency improvements in vehicles are insufficient to meet Ireland’s ambitious target: large behavioural change in the direction of sustainable modes and travel reductions are needed. Such changes will only be possible if policies can shift Irish transport systems away from car dependency. Building on the OECD process “Systems Innovation for Net Zero” and extensive consultation with Irish stakeholders, this report assesses the potential of implemented and planned Irish policies to transform car-dependent systems. It identifies transformative policies that can help Ireland transition to sustainable transport systems that work for people and the planet. It also provides recommendations to scale up such transformative policies and refocus the electrification strategy so that it fosters, rather than hinders, transformational change.

Tourism has been hit hard by the depth and duration of the crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Just as the sector was starting to rebound, the economic fallout from Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has dealt a fresh blow to recovery prospects. The 2022 edition of OECD Tourism Trends and Policies analyses tourism performance and policy trends to support recovery across 50 OECD countries and partner economies. It examines the key tourism recovery challenges and outlook ahead, and highlights the need for co-ordinated, forward-looking policy approaches to set tourism on a path to a more resilient, sustainable and inclusive future. Evidence on the significance of the tourism economy is presented, with data covering domestic, inbound and outbound tourism, enterprises and employment, and internal tourism consumption. Tourism policy priorities, reforms and developments are analysed and examples of country practices highlighted. Thematic chapters provide insights on building resilience in the tourism ecosystem and promoting a green tourism recovery.

This report examines why freight carriers and shippers choose one transport mode over others. It analyses the main determinants for using road, rail, inland waterways, coastal shipping or pipelines to move goods and assesses government policies to influence it. The study also reviews how shifting freight to more sustainable modes could reduce the contribution of goods transport to climate change and provides recommendations for more effective policies. The role of mode choice in alleviating congestion and making goods transport safer is also addressed. Three case studies from China, Canada and the Netherlands highlight modal-shift policies.

Over the coming years, significant infrastructure investment will be required to sustain economic growth and improve well-being in many regions and cities. Subnational governments will have a key role to help provide this infrastructure - they are responsible for almost 60% of total public investment in G20 countries. This G20-OECD Policy Toolkit, developed with input from the Asian Development Bank, aims to support inclusive and quality infrastructure investment by subnational governments across developing, emerging and developed countries. It outlines key elements of creating an enabling environment for subnational infrastructure investment. It then details common and innovative funding sources, financing instruments and investment approaches. Rather than recommending specific instruments, it provides a ‘toolkit’ of options for policymakers and practitioners. The Policy Toolkit is supported by 23 case studies.

This publication is part of the OECD workstream on Preparing Regions for Demographic Change. It elaborates a case study for the Portuguese region of Alentejo and focuses on improving the delivery of educational services taking into account the multi-level governance context. The study highlights the need to better articulate and co-ordinate the delivery of educational services among levels of government to improve access and quality. It also sheds light on the decisive role that geography plays and the importance of adopting a spatial lens to mitigate the rising inequality present in Portugal in access to education services. Alentejo is a rural region that expects to lose 30% of its population between 2020 and 2080, hence it needs to put in place forward-looking and effective policy levers to delivery sustainable education services to citizens living in rural communities.

This report examines what ongoing shifts in the objectives of transport policy mean for transport project appraisal and planning processes. Many countries are rethinking their transport policy and planning objectives. Their focus is increasingly shifting from providing mobility to ensuring accessibility; giving greater priority to equitable access for all; recognising the urgency of decarbonising transport; and making urban environments healthier, safer and more liveable. The report summarises the findings of a discussion among 44 experts from 21 countries at an ITF Roundtable held from 29 September to 31 October 2021.

This policy paper sheds light on the type of investments that can maximise social returns and help bridge territorial gaps in access to services. It starts by explaining why it is challenging to balance proximity and cost-efficiency in service provision while maintaining quality across territories, highlighting the key role of subnational governments in providing education and health services. It then assesses the extent of territorial inequalities in access to basic education and health care services in G20 countries based on a comprehensive review of the evidence available. Finally, the report reflects on future needs based on demographic projections and offers two main implications for the future of infrastructure investment: 1) the need to tailor strategic and flexible investments to different demographic realities; and 2) the need to support quality infrastructure investment by subnational governments.