Background and aim Transport planning faces new demands\r\nfor a dialogue with users. Transport planners no longer just\r\nbuild roads; nowadays they also must listen to users, whose\r\nwishes are meant to have an impact on the design and maintenance\r\nof the road transport system. Yet how can we know\r\nwhat users really want? This article sets out to analyze the\r\nmethods with which transport planners gather information\r\nabout users and their needs; to do so, it uses a case-study of\r\nhow transport planners at the National Swedish Road Authority\r\nhandle these questions on a day-to-day basis.\r\nResult and discussion The results show that the planners�\r\npractices can be analytically understood as something that\r\nproduces knowledge, representativity, and the identities and\r\nneeds of the users. The planners base their analyses of user\r\nneed largely on personal experience. The descriptive, interpretative,\r\nand evaluating elements in their knowledge production\r\ntend to be hidden in central policy documents and the workings\r\nof operational planning systems. If the goals with respect to\r\nuser influence are to be attained, transport planning must be\r\npursued with a greater understanding of how it conceives of its\r\nusers as specific categories with particular needs and identities.
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