This subject compels us to examine a problem that is central to the whole of our economic, social and ecological development - of mobility. Because the subject of local public passenger transport must be considered in the context of the future organisation of mobility, it is as it were, the stage on which the strategic future of local public passenger transport will be played out. More than almost any other subject, that of transport and mobility affects almost everyone in this country, either as active road and rail-users or passive "victims". An overloaded transport infrastructure, substantial economic losses due to traffic congestion, a level of environmental pollution from private and commercial vehicles which is no longer tolerable in some parts of the region. Added to this, exposure to noise stress for many people living or working along main roads, and the relatively recent aspect of freedom experienced by the last few generations in terms of their almost unlimited ability to move quickly from one place to another, characterise the conflicting picture of mobility.
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