Estimating Transport Disadvantage and Unmet Transport Need: Methodological Options: Final Report

Transport disadvantage is a critical social issue and a key contributing factor to social exclusion (Hayes et al., 2008). Specifically, transport disadvantage refers to situations where an individual or household's participation in the economic, social and political life of the community is restricted or inhibited by inability to access private or public transport (Kenyon et al., 2003). Responding to a request from Transport for NSW, Western Sydney Community Forum (WSCF) collaborated with the Urban Research Centre at UWS to develop robust methodologies for estimating transport disadvantage and unmet needs in Western Sydney. A small team of researchers at UWS including experts in urban planning, social policy, statistical modelling and Geographic Information Systems, was assisted by a Reference Group assembled by WSCF which included representatives of Transport for NSW, Community Transport providers, Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils, NSW Council of Social Service, and other academic expertise. This report presents the methodologies as well the literature, analyses and rationale that underpins them. In developing these methodologies existing client and occasion of service data from two large Community Transport providers based in Western Sydney were closely analysed and compared to general population. The CT data were mapped using GIS.