(Network Design Lab, University of Sydney, 2021) Ermagun, Alireza; Levison, David
From its source Latin accedere, the assimilated form of ad and cedere, access means "to approach." It conveys the "habit or power of getting into the presence of someone or something." The contemporary meaning differs, but has not strayed too far from the origin. Access means freedom, possession rights, and other means of benefiting from resources. It offers neither what people will do, nor what people want to do, rather what people could do. Transport access is a product of mobility and place and immediately relates to the transport network and the relative location of human activities and housing. However, there is still confusion among engineers and planners in differentiating access from mobility. Mobility indicates one’s ability to move easily. It encompasses both speed and travel time by defining how far one can travel in a given time. Access, however, is concerned with the opportunities that can be reached in a given time.