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AH2303 Transport and Sustainable Development 7.5 credits

The transport system has implications for all parts of society. It creates conditions for economic activities and it uses resources. It affects the environment in terms of e.g. air quality and climate change. It also has consequences for social organisation and for the distribution of important parts of welfare within and between generations. In summary, there are strong connections between the transport system and sustainable development. The course provides an overview of these connections at various geographical levels and outlines transport strategies and policies for increasing sustainability. Key methods and approaches for analysing sustainable transport systems are presented, such as scenarios, forecasting, backcasting, environmental impact analysis and strategic environmental assessment.

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Choose semester and course offering to see current information and more about the course, such as course syllabus, study period, and application information.

Application

For course offering

Spring 2025 Start 17 Mar 2025 programme students

Application code

60405

Headings with content from the Course syllabus AH2303 (Spring 2020–) are denoted with an asterisk ( )

Content and learning outcomes

Course contents

  • Sustainability concepts and indicators. Visions of sustainable transport systems and assessment of the present situation.
  • Energy futures and climate change – the role of the transport system.
  • The potential for technological development in transport and infrastructure systems in relation to various energy futures.
  • Scenarios and backcasting as tools for analysing sustainable transport.
  • Scenarios and forecasting as tools for analysing sustainable transport.
  • Sustainable urban development and mobility.
  • Environmental impacts of transport and methods of assessment (e.g. environmental impact assessment – EIA).
  • Strategic assessment of sustainability in the transport sector (e.g. strategic environmental assessment – SEA).
  • Strategies and policies for approaching sustainable transport

The content of the course is presented in lectures on methodology and applications. Further training on concrete examples is provided in tutorials in the form of case studies, exercises or study visits. In a project assignment, the student will analyse the sustainability impacts of a plan, a policy or a project in a transport context. The resulting analysis should be summarised in a report to be presented and discussed in a seminar.

Intended learning outcomes

After the course you should be able to:

  • account for sustainability concepts and indicators, discuss visions of sustainable transport and compare with properties of present transport systems.
  • describe alternative energy futures and their relations to climate change and explain the role of transport systems in different scenarios.
  • discuss the potential for technological development in transport and infrastructure systems in relation to different energy scenarios.
  • describe how scenarios and backcasting can be used to analyse sustainable transport systems
  • apply scenarios and forecasting for analysis of sustainable transport options
  • analyse relationships between urban development and mobility patterns and their implications for sustainability
  • identify environmental impacts of transport and apply the environmental impact assessment approach on a transport project
  • account for the strategic environmental assessment approach and apply it on a transport plan
  • select and synthesise policies and strategies for approaching sustainable transport.

Literature and preparations

Specific prerequisites

For admitted students to the Master of Science in Civil Engineering and Urban Management (CSAMH) or the Master of Science in Transport and Geoinformation Technology (TTGTM), there are no additional requirements.

For other students:

  • A completed bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, urban planning, geomatics, geography, engineering physics, computer science, statistics, economics, and/or mathematics, including at least 3 university credits (hp) in Probability & Statistics; and
  • English language proficiency equivalent to (the Swedish upper secondary school) English course B/6.

Recommended prerequisites

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Equipment

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Literature

Preliminärt kommer kurslitteraturen att baseras på artiklar i vetenskapliga tidskrifter och andra källor på Internet. En komplett litteraturlista kommer att ges på hemsidan före kursen.

Examination and completion

If the course is discontinued, students may request to be examined during the following two academic years.

Grading scale

A, B, C, D, E, FX, F

Examination

  • INLA - Assignment, 4.0 credits, grading scale: A, B, C, D, E, FX, F
  • PROA - Project, 3.5 credits, grading scale: A, B, C, D, E, FX, F

Based on recommendation from KTH’s coordinator for disabilities, the examiner will decide how to adapt an examination for students with documented disability.

The examiner may apply another examination format when re-examining individual students.

Opportunity to complete the requirements via supplementary examination

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Opportunity to raise an approved grade via renewed examination

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Examiner

Ethical approach

  • All members of a group are responsible for the group's work.
  • In any assessment, every student shall honestly disclose any help received and sources used.
  • In an oral assessment, every student shall be able to present and answer questions about the entire assignment and solution.

Further information

Course room in Canvas

Registered students find further information about the implementation of the course in the course room in Canvas. A link to the course room can be found under the tab Studies in the Personal menu at the start of the course.

Offered by

Main field of study

Built Environment

Education cycle

Second cycle

Add-on studies

Second year courses in the Master’s Programme in Transport Systems are appropriate follow-up courses.

Contact

Fariya Sharmeen sharmeen@kth.se