Elevate Project: Participant Interview Data, 2023-2024

The dataset consists of professionally transcribed semi-structured interviews (n=110). The interviews were between 20 and 90 minutes long. They were recorded before (n=48) and after (n=55) month-long free loans of electric cargo bikes in suburbs of Leeds, Oxford and Brighton in Summer-Autumn 2023, and after (n=10) winter loans of the e-cargo bikes for between 3 and 6 months in Winter-Spring 2023-4. Leeds pre-summer interviews (n=16) Leeds post-summer interviews (n=18) Leeds post-winter interviews (n=3) Oxford pre-summer interviews (n-16) Oxford post-summer interviews (n-19) Oxford post-winter interviews (n-3) Brighton pre-summer interviews (n=17) Brighton post-summer interviews (n=18) Brighton post-winter interviews (n=4) These interviews collected pre-trial everyday travel routines and expectations of use of the e-cargo bikes with the post-trial reality. This enabled us to explore: which trips had been undertaken with the e-cargo bike, and why; which had not, and why; which travel routines suited the e-cargo bike; which unexpected trips were generated with its availability; the subjective, affective and embodied experiences of e-cargo bike usage, as well as the post-trial intention to buy, and recommendations to policy-makers about how to make e-cargo bike usage and ownership more attractive. Some interviews involved multiple householders, including children.<p>The UK transport sector lags behind all other sectors in its achievement of energy diversification and carbon emission reductions to date, with emissions from transport essentially unchanged since the benchmark year of 1990. The Committee on Climate Change have been very critical of this failure and identified electrically-assisted scooters and bikes as part of solutions that need to be urgently accelerated. Indeed, the UK lags behind other countries in the uptake of a range of innovative light vehicles for both passenger and freight applications. Examples include electrically-assisted: bicycles, cargo bicycles, push scooters, skateboards, trikes, quadricycles, hoverboards etc. These involve some electrical assistance, as well as some energy expenditure by the user. Hence, we class these vehicles as light electric vehicles for active travel (LEVATs). They enable people to cycle, scoot, skate or otherwise travel more easily or enjoyably than conventional walking or cycling. Their power source provides the opportunity to link to a variety of digital technologies - from unlocking shared vehicles, to 'track-and-trace' systems for delivery companies, to map systems or health feedback tools for users - what ELEVAVTE refers to as 'digital' travel. Innovation at the interface of e-mobility and digital technologies plays a key role for the uptake of these novel modes, with energy, IT and transport industries as key players. Increased uptake of these vehicles has significant potential for reducing mobility-related energy demand and carbon emissions, especially when users switch from non-active modes such as cars or vans. The aim of this project is to better understand these opportunities - the technological and business options and specifications, where and who they might appeal to, what trips they could be used for, how far they could replace conventional motor vehicle trips - and some of the challenges that accompany them - such as overall energy usage, safety and regulatory issues, digital integration, physical environment design, battery standardisation and behavioural inertia. After developing typologies and technology assessments based on multiple criteria, the empirical end user research will consist of surveys (aiming for 1,200 responses), demonstration days (aiming to engage at least 300 people) and longer trials with at least 60 private individuals in 3 cities in England throughout 2020 and 2021. Quantitative surveys and in-depth interviews will be undertaken with participants before and after usage to understand changes in user perceptions and experience, triangulated with GPS tracking of the trial vehicles and contextual data (e.g. weather, hilliness). As part of the work, we will develop new safety training resources for each mode, drawing on, and adapting, existing UK initiatives and international experience and working towards certified schemes. Freight applications in the logistics industry will be analysed through expert interviews and case studies. A number of technology and demand scenarios will assess the whole lifecycle health and environmental impacts. This will include work with the World Health Organization expert group to extend the HEAT tool (which enables users without expertise in impact assessment to conduct economic assessments of the health impacts of walking or cycling) to include these types of vehicle. This project is supported by a range of partners - including the three local authorities, Sustrans and the World Health Organization - and will be guided by an advisory panel. We will also engage with a range of industry stakeholders, through the Transport Systems Catapult, Clean Growth UK and other means. We also envisage international engagement in the work, given the rapidly evolving and growing nature of the topic, and the lack of a substantial academic literature on the implications of these innovative light vehicles for energy demand, mobility and climate change.</p>本数据集包含经专业转录的半结构化访谈（n=110），访谈时长介于20至90分钟之间。访谈分别于2023年夏秋季节，在利兹、牛津和布莱顿郊区开展的为期1个月的电动货运自行车免费试用前后进行（分别为n=48和n=55），以及2023-2024年冬春季节开展的为期3至6个月的电动货运自行车冬季试用后进行（n=10）。具体分布如下： 利兹夏季前访谈（n=16） 利兹夏季后访谈（n=18） 利兹冬季后访谈（n=3） 牛津夏季前访谈（n-16） 牛津夏季后访谈（n=19） 牛津冬季后访谈（n=3） 布莱顿夏季前访谈（n=17） 布莱顿夏季后访谈（n=18） 布莱顿冬季后访谈（n=4） 本批访谈采集了试用前的日常出行习惯与电动货运自行车使用预期，以及试用后的实际使用情况，借此得以开展以下方向的研究：受访者使用电动货运自行车的出行场景及动因；未使用该车辆的出行场景及缘由；适配电动货运自行车的出行习惯；因车辆可用而新增的意外出行场景；使用电动货运自行车的主观感受、情感体验与具身经验；以及试用后的购买意向，还有向政策制定者提出的、提升电动货运自行车使用与拥有吸引力的相关建议。部分访谈涵盖多名家庭成员，包括儿童。 迄今为止，英国交通部门在能源多元化与碳排放削减方面的进展落后于其他所有产业部门，自1990年基准年以来，交通领域排放量基本未发生变化。气候变化委员会（Committee on Climate Change）对这一滞后现状提出严厉批评，并将电动辅助滑板车与自行车列为亟需加快推广的解决方案之一。事实上，英国在客运与货运领域的多款创新型轻型车辆推广方面均落后于其他国家，此类车辆包括电动辅助自行车、电动货运自行车、电动滑板车、电动滑板、三轮自行车、四轮车、悬浮滑板等。这类车辆既依靠电力辅助驱动，也需要使用者付出一定体力能耗，因此本研究将此类车辆归类为主动出行轻型电动车（light electric vehicles for active travel, LEVATs）。相较于传统步行或骑行，此类车辆可让人们骑行、滑滑板车、滑滑板或以其他方式出行时更轻松愉悦。此类车辆的动力系统可对接多种数字技术——从共享车辆解锁、配送企业的“追踪溯源”系统，到面向使用者的地图系统或健康反馈工具——即ELEVAVTE项目所称的“数字化出行”。电动出行与数字技术交叉领域的创新，对于这类新型出行方式的推广至关重要，能源、信息技术与交通产业均为该领域的核心参与者。 加大此类车辆的推广力度，可显著降低出行相关的能源需求与碳排放，尤其当使用者从非主动出行方式（如私家车或厢式货车）转向此类车辆时。本项目旨在更深入地认知此类车辆的应用潜力：包括技术与商业方案及相关规格、适用场景与目标人群、可覆盖的出行类型、可替代传统机动车出行的比例；同时也将探讨其伴随的各类挑战——如整体能源消耗、安全与监管问题、数字集成、实体出行环境设计、电池标准化以及行为惯性等。在基于多维度标准构建分类体系并开展技术评估后，本项目的终端用户实证研究将包含三部分：面向1200份有效反馈的问卷调查、计划吸引至少300人参与的体验日活动，以及2020至2021年间在英格兰三座城市开展的、面向至少60名私人使用者的长期试用。研究人员将在试用前后对参与者开展定量问卷调查与深度访谈，以了解使用者认知与体验的变化，并通过试用车辆的GPS追踪数据与背景数据（如天气、地形坡度）进行三角验证。作为研究的一部分，本项目将借鉴并优化英国现有相关举措与国际经验，为各类出行方式开发全新的安全培训资源，并致力于构建认证体系。本项目还将通过专家访谈与案例研究，分析物流业中的货运应用场景。项目将通过多种技术与需求场景模型，评估此类车辆全生命周期的健康与环境影响，此项工作将与世界卫生组织专家小组合作，对HEAT工具（可让不具备影响评估专业知识的用户开展步行或骑行健康影响的经济评估）进行扩展，将此类车辆纳入评估范围。 本项目获得了包括三个地方当局、Sustrans与世界卫生组织在内的多家合作方的支持，并将由专家咨询委员会提供指导。本项目还将通过交通系统弹射中心（Transport Systems Catapult）、英国清洁增长计划（Clean Growth UK）等渠道，与众多行业利益相关方开展合作。鉴于该主题的快速发展与广泛关注度，且目前针对此类创新轻型车辆在能源需求、出行与气候变化方面的影响尚无大量学术研究成果，本项目还计划开展国际层面的合作交流。