Transport Trends & Public Policy Impacts

This assignment examines evolving trends in the transportation sector, focusing on shifts in passenger travel patterns and the influence of factors like technological advancements (autonomous vehicles) and policy changes. The analysis explores data on passenger kilometers by mode over time, highlights the impact of rising bus fares and service reductions, and delves into the resurgence of Uber usage despite its challenges. Furthermore, it investigates the societal trends shaping mobility, including the increasing importance of diversity in companies operating within this sector.

EMERGING
THEMES

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
Critical Evaluation of Current Impact of Emerging Industry and Market on Discipline and
Wider Sector................................................................................................................................1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................4
Identification and Critical Discussion of Emerging Themes relevant to Discipline and Sector.4
Critical Analysis of the Implications of Themes on Future of Business.....................................6
Course of Actions for Organisations...........................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Theme refers to a specific subject matter of discussion. It is a dominant or unified idea
which is essential to be effectively reviewed in order to understand the subject matter effectively
(Abrahart and et. al., 2012). The following project is based on transportation industry, which is
one of the most effectively growing industries in the world. It briefly discusses the four pillars of
emerging themes which are: Emerging changes in society, Emerging work environments,
Emerging technologies and Emerging industries and markets. The report covers a critical
understanding of emerging themes along with their impacts on the transportation industry. It also
includes a critical analysis of the implications of identified themes on the future business within
the industry in next five to ten years. The report also considers justifiable recommendations and
strategic solutions which businesses within organisations could take in order to gain a
competitive edge.
TASK 1
Critical Evaluation of Current Impact of Emerging Industry and Market on Discipline and Wider
Sector
Transportation Industry involves several businesses as well as organisation which
functions and operates in order to move people, infrastructures as well as goods from a certain
point to another. Furthermore, it is a really wide business which involves airlines, railroads,
roads, trucking, etc. Moreover, this industry is further divided into several disciplines such as
public and private transport. As for public transport, there are several emerging themes which
have essential impact on this discipline and the wider sector. It is essential that these pillars of
emerging themes are critically analysed along with impact of Emerging Industry and Market on
the public transport and wider sector. This critical analysis is mentioned below:
 Emerging Changes in Society:
This pillar of emerging themes has an impact on each and every industry and quite
influence the strategic decisions taken by businesses in different sectors (Kittinger and et. al.,
2013). As for transportation industry, there are several evident changes in societies such as
urbanisation and formulation of Smart Cities. With emergence of connection of social capital,
human capital along with Information and Communication Technology; such changes is shaping
up the public transport in terms of accessibility and mobility. Another change in the society is
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regarding environment awareness. Climate changes have shaped up the transport industry in
terms of developing new energy efficient mode which are environmental friendly and low on
carbon emissions (NINE SOCIETAL TRENDS SHAPING MOBILITY, 2019)
 Emerging Work Environments:
With change in environment, there is an effective change witnesses in the working
environment as well (Torii, Hartley and Nelson, Georgetown University, 2013). Both these
pillars are interlinked and change in one pillar results in changes in other. With appropriate
globalisation, transportation industry's work environment has emerged in terms of diversity and
training. Businesses within the public transport like Uber have complied with the emerging work
environment in terms of ensuring diversity in their workplace along with providing effective and
robust training to their employees (This is how Uber plans to change its own company culture,
2018).
 Emerging Technologies:
Another pillar of emerging themes is the emerging technologies. It has an effective
impact on the businesses within transportation industry (Thomas and Weiss, Hewlett-Packard
Development Co LP, 2015). Furthermore, this pillar has led to several changes in societies in
terms of urbanisation as well as digitalisation being used in the work environments. However,
this emerging theme has its impact on businesses in transportation industry. One effective
example of the same is the driverless technology that have been implemented by companies like
Uber, which ensures safety and accuracy in delivery of services.
 Emerging Industries and Markets:
One of the most essential pillars of emerging themes is emerging industries and markets.
It is quite interrelated to each of the above mentioned themes. Reason for the same is that
society, work environment and technology are responsible for emergence of several industry and
markets which have a crucial impact on a discipline as well as on the wider sector.
Currently, United Kingdom is experiencing a rise in public transport over the years. Price
of services play a crucial role in the same. With easy accessibility, better mobility and new
techniques in relation to security are the reason of emergence of the same. However, currently
within the UK, due to rise in pay prices of railroad and buses, preference of customers have
slowly started to shift (Uber self-driving cars: everything you need to know, 2019). However, all
such factors leading to decline of one discipline within the sector has led to emergence of other
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which is rise in preference of private hire vehicles and taxis (Bus travel hits 12-year-low as
prices rise and services are axed, 2019).
Illustration 1: Passenger kilometres by mode, Great Britain: 1952
to 2017
(Source: Passenger kilometres by mode, Great Britain: 1952 to 2017, 2018)
As per the above display, almost 83% of the passenger kilometres were through taxis and
private hired vehicles. Another trend which is shaping up this discipline and have long term
impacts is emerging markets. There is a rise in new-age market globally, moreover, to gain a
competitive positioning in the market, it is becoming compulsory for each business to effectively
work as per preferences and tastes of millennials. There are new trends which have been evident
with respect to rise in markets in public transport. According to various global-level analysis,
transit rides have been substantially increasing over the years. In recent years, more than 10
billion rides have been logged in markets with respect to public transport. Millennials tend to use
more public transport more against private ones due to effective ease, comfort and service
provided by businesses in this sector (Dramatic shifts in transport trends of UK cities, revealed
in new report, 2018). Moreover, out of all the modes, millennials are preferring companies like
Uber for their transport often. As an example, millennials were amongst the segments which
preferred the company highly for transportation (Millennials are reviving Uber during the
darkest time in company history, 2019).
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This has a positive impact on the public transport. Within this discipline, due to such high
preference, there are more business opportunities available for companies like Uber due to rise in
public transport within the country. However, as per wider sector is concerned, it is having a
negative impact on both other modes of public transport as well as private transport. As for
private transport, within the UK, since majority of people are opting for public transport, the
current impact of emerging trends and markets have been quite against the private owned vehicle
market. Furthermore, as for other modes of transport, businesses like Uber have been a constant
competition for other modes such as railroads. Overall, emerging industries and markets have a
positive impact on the public transport as with emergence of new technologies and positive
changes within the societies, more customers are preferring public transport and there are
effective rise in services provided by businesses like Uber, which is positive for the sector.
TASK 2
Identification and Critical Discussion of Emerging Themes relevant to Discipline and Sector
It is essential that several emerging themes are identified along with their critical
discussions which helps in gaining an understanding of their impact to the discipline as well as
on the wider sector. As for transportation sector, there are several emerging themes which are
relevant to the discipline as well as the sector and which are discussed below:
 Emerging Change in Society:
Changes in societies are inevitable and it is essential that each sector and businesses
comply with these changes in order to effectively gain a competitive advantage. Furthermore,
compliance with the same also allow them to effectively enhance their preference in the market.
There are several changes within the societies recently which have their impact on the public
transport and wider sector. For instance, there is a substantial rise in urbanisation within the UK.
More than half the population reside in urban areas and there are ongoing plans regarding the
same. with rapid urbanisation, there are several positive impacts that could be witnessed by
public transport and wider sector. For instance, there are needs of new modes and extension in
the existing ones. This presents new opportunities for firms like Uber to bring in new services
and routes to satisfy their customers. Furthermore, it also has a wider impact in terms of
provision of more business opportunities for people. However, one negative impact on this
discipline and wider sector is that with rise in urbanisation and public transport, there is also rise
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in health issues (A Review of the Urban Development and Transport Impacts on Public Health,
2019). Urbanisation and rise in transportation adversely affect health of civilians. Another trend
similar to this issue which has an impact on this discipline and wider sector is rise in
environmental awareness. More people are becoming aware about the severe impacts which
pollution from vehicles cause to the climate and natural resources. This change has a negative
impact on the public transport, especially in businesses like Uber as more people aware about
climate issues tend to travel in other modes such as railroads and buses. As for wider sector,
individuals are inclining towards opting out public transport rather than private ones.
 Emerging Work Environment:
Work environment within transportation sector has witnessed several changes in relation
to the way employees work and are managed. Furthermore, emerging work environment within
this sector has effective impact on the public transport and wider sector. For instance, cultural
diversity is being given effective importance in public transport lately and there are several
businesses such as Uber, which are hiring competent individuals from different countries. The
positive impact of the same is that with such effective work environment, businesses within
public transport would ensure cultural integration which would further have a positive impact on
their customers worldwide. Furthermore, with support to different culture, diverse customers
would be attracted to businesses. Another trend which has an impact on public transport is
training. There are new training programs been implemented by businesses within this sector, for
example, Uber. Such training has a positive impact in relation to providing even better and
competent service to customers. However, one negative impact which might be experienced by
this discipline is the training cost for providing training and development to their employees.
 Emerging Technologies:
As for technology, there are several new technologies with respect to public transport that
have dominated within the market. As the example mentioned above, companies like Uber are
bringing in new technologies in their services like Driverless technologies. The positive impact
of such technologies is that people are actually looking for new innovations everyday which help
them achieving more ease and convenience. With technologies such as the one mentioned above,
people would be quite safer, seeing the role of Artificial Intelligence, and would further eradicate
any sort of inconvenience in the services. However, quite recently, there have been a case of
Uber driverless car crash, which questioned the effectiveness of the this technology. Moreover,
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with such high dependency over this, businesses within public transportation might actually
suffer lack of effective talent (Uber Self-Driving Car Crash: What Really Happened, 2019).
 Emerging Industries and Market:
As for emerging industries and market, there has been rise in public transport and
preference of millennials which has a wide positive impact on this discipline and wider sector.
People are actually inclining themselves more on public transport as they are reliable and
provides utmost convenience to individuals. However, it requires different strategies and tactical
outlook for businesses to effectively keep their organisations performing consistently despite
competition from other modes.
Critical Analysis of the Implications of Themes on Future of Business
Each identified theme has several positive as well as negative impacts on public transport
as well as wider transportation sector. However, it is also necessary to imply their future impacts
on these businesses in order to present a viable and effective business solutions which could help
them in formulation of effective long term strategies which serve them well in future and ensure
sustainability. Following is the critical analysis of implications of these themes on future on the
discipline and wider sector:
 Emerging Change in Society:
Society is likely to change in the future as well. With globalisation on the rise, this trend
is likely to continue in the future too. With rise in urbanisation, more options are likely to
unravel in the future which would enhance business opportunities for companies like Uber. They
could ensure more effective and essential transporting systems which enhances mobility of
individuals from one place to another. However, the most challenging aspect regarding this
would be for companies like Uber to cope up with pollution, moreover, environmental awareness
too could be perceived as a long term challenge in the future. Thus, it is essential that appropriate
modes and techniques are developed in relation to address this issue and gain a competitive
advantage in the world.
 Emerging Work Environment:
In future, work environment too is likely to change and new type of environment would
emerge. However, this trend has mostly positive impact on the future as well. Political
integration is likely to open gates for diversity in the future. Within the business sector of the
UK, this pillar would have a long term impact on the businesses as its policies are quite
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appropriate and favourable in terms of bringing in individuals from different sectors within the
country. However, there could be positive and negative impact on the future of businesses in
public transportation like Uber. For instance, there have been several evidences presented which
indicates that businesses are more likely to earn profit through ensuring diversity within their
workplace (More Evidence That Company Diversity Leads To Better Profits, 2019). However, as
for challenges, cultural diversity would call for better communication methods to maintain
efficiency in exchange of information. This could be a big challenge for businesses like Uber in
the future.
 Emerging Technologies:
This trend perhaps has the most evident implication on the future of this discipline and
wider sector. Within public transport, there are several technologies that are emerging and that
would likely to overtake the current technologies, such as Autonomous technology. Further, with
rise of Artificial Intelligence, driverless technologies would have an impact on Public
transportation. However, there are both positive as well as negative impacts of these emerging
technologies on the discipline and wider sector. This market is projected to rise to almost $1.5
Trillion by 2030 (The future of autonomous public transport in the UK, 2019). the positive
impact of the same would be that there would be transportation systems that would be intelligent,
connected as well as customised that will support transportation in the future. However, it is such
a complex system which requires highly skilled workforce in terms of managing the same. This
would be a challenge for businesses like Uber.
 Emerging Industries and Markets:
The trend of public transport being preferred is likely to enhance with respect to rise in
millennials and changes in society in terms of private transportations. This would be an
opportunity for businesses like Uber to spread their services and create new networks to help
enhance the convenience within their transportation system. However, the challenge would be
competition and new technologies which are being used by other modes like railroads to ensure
speed, security and comfort.
Course of Actions for Organisations
After examining the themes and effectively ensuring their future implications, it is
essential for businesses within the discipline like Uber to formulate strategic decisions and
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courses of action to ensure existence and competitiveness within their businesses. These
decisions and actions are mentioned below:
 Uber, in order to cope up with the change in society must effectively ensure that its future
vehicles comply effectively with ongoing environmental concerns. To ensure this, their
vehicles could be hybrid and electronically operated to assure less usage of fuel and
reduced pollution.
 In case the company wants to comply with the changing business environment, the firm
must ensure diverse workforce along with integrated communication training to ensure
effective flow of information.
 To gain competitive advantage through technology, Uber must ensure that they test their
vehicles effectively and regularly monitor their performance for promoting safety and
comfort of customers. Further, they must also ensure quality delivery of service through
technologies like AI to appropriately compete with other public transport modes.
 In case of emerging industries and markets, new marketing techniques and better access
to customer could be performed in relation to appropriately comply with the theme and
gain more customers in the future.
CONCLUSION
Thus, it is concluded by the report, that it is essential that several emerging themes are
evaluated and understood effectively. Furthermore, each pillar must be critically understood to
analyse their current impact on the discipline and wider sector. Another aspect which is essential
to be taken into consideration is that there is a need to evaluate their future implications of these
themes. Lastly, it is crucial for businesses within this sector to take effective course of action and
develop strategies to ensure appropriate sustainability and competitive edge in the future.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Abrahart, R.J., and et. al., 2012. Two decades of anarchy? Emerging themes and outstanding
challenges for neural network river forecasting. Progress in Physical Geography. 36(4).
pp.480-513.
Kittinger, J.N., and et. al., 2013. Emerging frontiers in social-ecological systems research for
sustainability of small-scale fisheries. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability.
5(3-4). pp.352-357.
Thomas, J.D. and Weiss, J.L., Hewlett-Packard Development Co LP, 2015. Automated event
management. U.S. Patent Application 14/373,780.
Torii, M., Hartley, D.M. and Nelson, N.P., Georgetown University, 2013. System and method for
detecting, collecting, analyzing, and communicating emerging event-related
information. U.S. Patent Application 13/883,515.
Online
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Uber self-driving cars: everything you need to know. 2019. [Online] Available Through:
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