麻豆淫院

Green transport initiatives such as bicycle lanes or creating spaces for electric vehicle charging points have become heated political battlegrounds in the United Kingdom, and British people respond to such proposals broadly in line with their political party preference and political orientation, new research from the University of Bath shows.

But frustrated policymakers might take heart from a study of 2,500 British people that found that support for state welfare measures bridges party divides, and might offer a clue on how to make environmentally friendly transport initiatives palatable across the political spectrum. The paper is in Global Environmental Change.

"Green transport initiatives鈥攁nd particularly the bicycle鈥攈ave become highly politicized and the subject of often vicious debate, which is remarkable when you consider that research in the 1970s offered hope that environmentalism might be a nonpartisan issue, uniting parties in supporting climate conservation," said Dr. Joanna Syrda of the School of Management.

"This study shows that political party preference is the single most important predictor in determining public support for new cycle lanes, parking spaces for electric car charging points, and building car parks to introduce more park and ride routes鈥攁nd nobody will be surprised to hear that Green Party voters welcome new bicycle lanes more than Reform supporters, for example," she said.

"However, one of the most striking results of the study of people's attitudes was the role played by welfarism鈥攁 measure of people's support for state welfare programs. I identified that people who are well disposed towards welfare initiatives are also more supportive of sustainable transport measures鈥攁nd that cuts across traditional left-right orientation and political party lines," Dr. Syrda said.

The study showed welfarism was the strongest factor in predicting support for local council spending to improve existing public transport, narrowing roads to widen pavements and creating pedestrianized high streets, and the second-strongest factor in support for allocating parking spaces to electric charging points, building car parks to introduce more park-and-ride routes, and new cycle lanes.

Dr. Syrda said the association between support for welfare and support for green transport offered a strategic entry point for policymakers, who should be reassured that political allegiances and support for green transport might not necessarily be in opposition, particularly as trends suggest that support for welfare has been increasing since 2010.

"If that trend continues, it may positively influence public backing for sustainable transport. For example, a transport campaign that links sustainability with securing workers' rights and livelihoods, such as those promoting a 'just transition,' may just resonate with the public, beyond their political party preference," she said.

The United Nations says a "just transition" ensures that environmentally sustainable economies are promoted in a way that is as fair and inclusive as possible for everyone concerned, creating decent work opportunities and leaving no one behind. It aims to ensure that the transition to net-zero emissions and climate resilience is orderly, inclusive and just.

"Cars and bicycles have become cultural and political symbols鈥攁utomobility aligns with values like freedom and individualism, while cycling represents system change and environmental consciousness. So this means that the humble cycle lane has, in many ways, become more than a road-planning issue, it is a battlefield of competing societal visions. Perhaps people's support for welfarism might be the common ground to bridge this divide?" Dr. Syrda said.