The 1970's and 1980's witnessed both substantial conceptual and practical interest in paratransit across Europe and North America, as well as widespread implementation of paratransit services and strategies. Subsequently, the trajectory of paratransit (also often referred to as flexible transport systems) has waned, to the point where it is frequently relegated to a very narrow niche (often related to special needs) in the spectrum of collective transport services. More recently, technological advances have made feasible new and / or improved approaches for organizing and delivering local passenger transportation. With practice, policy and research in paratransit now being impacted by these developments, a new set of possibilities is emerging. Some practitioners have forged ahead over the past decade and implemented services and organizational models that show the way forward for what is possible, sometimes without the benefit of the most advanced available technologies. This book draws on a selection of papers presented at the International Paratransit Conference in Monterey in October 2014 to capture these exciting developments.

Drawn from the International Paratransit Conference, “Shaping the New Future of Paratransit,” held in Monterey, California, in October 2014, along with commissioned contributions, the 19 papers in this volume examine issues and trends related to flexible transport systems for people with disabilities and others. Transportation, engineering, and other specialists from around the world discuss changing contexts, including the role of regulatory and institutional structures, nonemergency medical transport, and the development of large-scale demand responsive transport; operational aspects like the role of volunteers, rural transport planning, cost reporting, decision making, delivering accessible transportation, and the concept of the Shared Mobility Services Agency for planning and managing collective transport services; case studies of sub-Saharan African cities, the UK, Australia, and rural Norway; and the future of new and evolving forms of paratransit and on-demand transport, including transportation network companies and carsharing. -- Annotation ©2016 * (protoview.com) *

Edited by Corinne Mulley, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia John D. Nelson, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK