Policy and Institutional Reform
Transport policy and institutional reform establish a foundation for sustainable, accessible, and efficient transportation. These initiatives empower authorities to adapt to new challenges while ensuring that transport systems remain responsive to public needs. Thoughtful policy and reform enable countries to improve service delivery, attract investment, and build infrastructure that supports economic growth and social well-being.
DTS develop institutional and regulatory reforms that align responsibilities, capabilities and resources for action. We appreciate that the incentives, challenges, and barriers to change vary by location, therefore we aim to ground our recommendations by understanding stakeholder needs, their capabilities, and developing a realistic understanding of fiscal and political possibilities.
Highways and Roads (HDM-4)
There is a high demand for road paving, road rehabilitation and bottleneck relief in low-and middle-income countries. Arising from three needs: i) to improve local access; ii) to provide long-distance connections; and iii) to enhance network resilience in face of climate hazards, conflict and common disruption.
DTS advise on road infrastructure programs and road asset management. We help to develop the funding and institutional structures to maintain and operate roads over the long term. We ensure road design is locally appropriate and accords with maintenance capability.
DTS are skilled using the Highway Development and Management tool (HDM-4) to analyze road projects, networks and programs. HDM-4 can be used to manage the provision of road networks, predict the performance of road pavement technologies, and determine funding requirements.
Public Transport
DTS advise public and private sector clients on how public transport can best meet passenger demand, operator needs and government objectives. Our approach is to develop locally appropriate solutions that are deliverable and sustain operations over the long-term. By developing reforms that: i) improve the financial stability of operators, ii) can be implemented through reasonable institutional and operator development, and iii) are attuned to the needs of the passenger.
Our team are skilled at leveraging a wide range of datasets, spatial analytics, and social engagement to develop public transport strategies, network optimization plans, service improvement plans, and BRT. Accessibility and quality-of-service can be improved while maintaining affordability for both the passenger and the government by pursuing institutional and operator reform. Arrangements such as Gross Cost Contracting may also facilitate financing for e-bus deployment.
Freight Connectivity to Facilitate Trade
Improving freight connectivity is a key ambition for many countries and regional blocs, to secure access to essential goods (food security, raw materials) and to drive economic growth by increasing exports. However, fragmented transport networks, bottlenecks, inefficient haulage, and un-coordinated customs severely increase logistic costs and time.
DTS advise on the prioritization of hard and soft infrastructure to establish transit corridors, resilient multi-modal networks, and efficient green freight operations. Including port and border improvements, digitization to align custom processes, intermodal transfer facilities, logistic hubs, marketisation and coordination of hauliers.
Decarbonization, E-mobility and Air Quality
DTS develop strategies and roadmaps for cities and countries to achieve their decarbonization goals. We consider not just technological and regulatory feasibility, but also the socio-economic impact of policies. For the energy transition to be successful, it must improve livelihoods and living conditions for all. We take a system-based approach to coordinate the phasing of actions that are i) quick wins, ii) actions that enable transformative change, and iii) actions that are hard but essential to deliver the full magnitude of carbon reductions.
Within this work area, we have significant expertise developing motorization management policies that support economic growth and deliver air quality improvements. We also conduct feasibility studies for the operation of e-buses and develop policy to support the shift to electric vehicles.
Data Tools to Plan and Manage Transport
DTS are proponents of data led transport planning – as fair and robust analysis of data is necessary to inform good decision making. We are data literate, technologically adept and innovate in our use of data to better understand our complex world. We know how to lever existing datasets, big and small, and how to intelligently collect new datasets.
This is demonstrated by our team’s history of developing new techniques to survey, model and optimize paratransit, and the transit networks of mega-cities. We have also developed new techniques to model decarbonization, and air quality pathways related to vehicle fleet evolution.
Economic and Financial Appraisal
DTS conduct economic and financial appraisals for transport projects. Economic and financial appraisal is essential to evaluate the viability and impact of transportation projects. Our rigorous cost-benefit analysis assesses the economic value of proposed investments by examining factors like travel time savings, environmental effects, and safety improvements.
Financial appraisal then considers funding, revenue, and long-term financial sustainability, helping decision-makers prioritize projects with the highest returns. This process ensures that resources are allocated effectively, maximizing public benefit while supporting sustainable economic growth and enhancing overall transportation infrastructure.
Demand Modelling and Forecasting
To ascertain the viability of any transport project it is vital to forecast the demand for the infrastructure which requires sophisticated economic modelling. We bring experience in identifying and employing the appropriate modelling tools for the project, ranging from off-the-shelf software to bespoke modelling services. These insights empower governments, planners, and transport agencies to make data-driven decisions that address traffic congestion, improve safety, reduce emissions, and enhance accessibility.
