Effective organisational coordination for well-functioning public transport systems

Purpose and goal

The overall aims of the project were to contribute to the development of well-functioning public transport system (through a research project with the aim to develop policy recommendations about coordination between organisations that support the establishment of well-functioning public transport systems), to enhance the academic merits of Dr Robert Hrelja and boost international collaboration between VTI/K2 (Sweden´s national centre for research and education on public transport) and the Institute for Transport Studies (ITS) at the University of Leeds.

Expected results and effects

Visiting the University of Leeds strengthened my international network and advanced my academic qualifications. The research project resulted in an article in a scientific journal which gives practical recommendations on how to handle critical coordination issues between organisations that stand in the way of developing and implementing functional and attractive public transport systems. The VINNMER project helped K2 to internationalise its research teams, and the collaboration with ITS allowed other VTI and K2 researchers to visit ITS.

Planned approach and implementation

I undertook a three-month research visit at ITS. The research project about coordination between public transport stakeholders resulted in an article, and allowed me to develop my research further in this area by undertaking an international comparison. Research results was presented at Thredbo 2017 (International Conference Series on Competition and Ownership in Land Passenger Transport). At ITS I took part in PhD supervision. When returning to Sweden I attended the leadership training course UGL (Understanding Group and Leader) at the Swedish Defence University.