Tackling the Transport Barriers to Social Exclusion: the potential of individual transport budgets

The Department for Transport has commissioned CRSP to undertake a 'think piece' about the potential of using individualised budgets to ensure that people at risk of social exclusion have access to key services and employment and education opportunities. The idea of Individual Travel Budgets (ITBs) would be to provide financial assistance for transport directly to individuals as an alternative to transport subsidies and concessions. As apparent from the introduction of Direct Payments for disabled people, for example, individualised budgets can offer service-users greater flexibility and control over service provision. The context of the project is the accessibility agenda and the growing recognition of the central role transport has for social inclusion. The project reflects the DfT's efforts to look at the most innovative policy options to ensure accessibility for everyone. It will provide the formative thinking about the potential benefits, challenges and drawbacks of providing ITBs, consider the implications of ITBs for other services and provision, and assess the possible cost-effectiveness of individualised assistance.

Sponsor
Department for Transport

Project team
Noel Smith, Jacqueline Beckhelling and Sharon Walker.

The project commenced in February 2007 and completed in June 2007.

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