[sustran] information request on developing city transport patterns

[SUSTRAN Resource Centre]

Dr Eduardo Vasconcellos of São Paulo has just sent me the following
information request and has given me permission to relay it to
sustran-discuss in the hope that some of you can also help him.   I will
also try to put some info together.

Paul
------------------------
From: "eduardo a vasconcellos" <vascon at originet.com.br>
To: <pbarter at pd.jaring.my>
Subject: opinionon the book
Date: Tue, 2 May 2000 07:42:08 -0300

Dear Paul 
  
Again and again I have to thank you for sending me the news from Asia. They
are always very interesting and allows us frorm Latin America to have a
picture of what is going on there. I have just met Jeff Kenworthy in
Mexico, during the UITP meeting and we have discussed several issues about
the work his is doing for the UITP. 

I am writing to you to ask you a favour. I am writing a book on urban
transport in developing countries to be published in the UK and some data
are missing. I was wondering if you could have them with you or ask to some
friends to send them. They are: 
 * Walking characteristics in two more cities (gender, age, trip time,
purpose). The only data I have comes from our household survey here in São
Paulo and from the TRR 1441, for Beijing (Nonmotorised transportation
around the world, paper from Tanaboriboon and Jing, pp 16-26; however their
data on gender is not conclusive). 
* Bicycle use by gender in selected cities; the same aforementioned
comments on the TRR 1441 paper applies; 
* Motorcycle ownership increase in selected Asian or African cities in the
last decade or so;

I need also an opinion about a specific issue, that of motorcycles in Asia.
Here in Latin America we have few motorcycles and the main historical
change has been the rapid increase in automobiles, supported by the
government and pushed by the automotive industry through several means:
there is a very strong lobbying work, very effective, that hides important
economic interests. May I say the same phenomenon has happened in Asia (and
Africa to a lesser extent) in respect to motorcycles, the Japanese
manufacturers and local economic and political elite? Several papers
mention that very briefly but I would like to now your opinion. 

Paul, please see if you have such data available at hand. Should it be too
time - consuming for you, just select those immediately available and send
them to me. I know everybody has a lot of work to do and I do not want to
put further time constraints on you. 

I am attaching the book proposed content so you may have an idea about what
I am writing. 

Thank you for your help. 

Best regards