This week sees the launch of the Institute for Policy Research (IPR) Policy Fellowship Programme: Sustainable and automated transport (PFP:S&AT).

Developed in collaboration with Professor Andrew Heath (Department of Architecture Civil and Engineering), and funded by the Policy Support Fund from Research England, PFP:S&AT is a bespoke programme designed to directly connect University of Bath academics and researchers with policymakers working in departments responsible for delivering on solving key transport challenges, as set out by Grant Shapps, in his Department for Transport report: Decarbonising Transport. A better, Greener Britain, 2021.

The Programme, which sits alongside the IPR Policy Fellowship Programme and IPR Policy Fellowship Programme: Artificial Intelligence, offers the opportunity for senior decision-makers and policymakers from government and the third sector to learn about the latest academic research and thinking related to sustainable and automated transport. Through one-to-one or group meetings, they can explore the policy questions, or challenges, they are looking to address in their professional role, utilising world-class expertise.

The University of Bath is at the forefront of cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research on sustainable and automated transport. It is home to the Institute for Advanced Automotive Propulsion Systems (IAAPS), the post-graduate EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Advanced Automotive Propulsion Systems, and the recently-established Bath Beacon on Sustainable and Automated Transport. Through the PFP:S&AT, the University’s automotive ecosystem seeks to help inform policymakers and support policy planning to meet the nationally set targets by 2050 at local, regional, and national levels.

Head of Policy Programmes and Communications at the IPR, Amy Thompson, adds:

"We’re delighted to launch this Programme to help inform key areas of sustainable transport policy. Whether you’re looking to address behaviour change or decarbonisation of our transport systems, we hope that this Programme will be of interest to policymakers, and we look forward to working towards facilitating a policy transition for a more sustainable, and healthier, future."

PFP:S&AT is free of charge and applications are now open.