Stephen Parkes

Stephen Parkes is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research (CRESR) within Sheffield Hallam University's Sustainable Futures Cluster. His expertise spans transport policy, energy transitions, and social equity, with a focus on active travel, high-consumption households, and autonomous vehicle impacts. He holds a PhD from the University of Leeds (2011-2015) on disruptive events' influence on travel behavior, using the London 2012 Olympics as a case study.

His research interests include:

• Active travel policy and spatial equity
• High-consumption households (energy/transport)
• Autonomous vehicles' societal impacts
• Just transitions in industrial regions
• COVID-19's effect on urban mobility

Parkes' recent publications (2013-2025) predominantly analyze sustainable transport systems, consumption inequality, and pandemic-era policy responses. Key thematic trends include urban just transitions, road-space reallocation during crises, and comparative studies of energy consumption patterns across Europe.

He leads significant grants including:

• Active Travel Portfolio Research (2022-2027, DfT)
• Everyday Travel in Sheffield (2022-2023)
• Room to Move: COVID-19 Road-space Reallocation (2020-2021)

Parkes collaborates extensively within CRESR's Sustainable Futures Cluster, contributing to interdisciplinary teams on low-carbon transitions and community resilience.