[sustran] Re: transit in Mexico city

Craig Townsend townsend at central.murdoch.edu.au
Wed Apr 3 18:32:18 JST 2002


Dear Priya and Kisan,

Yes, among discussants there seems to be a consensus that walking and 
cycling are good for cities and citizens and should be encouraged.

 From my (limited) experience, this state of the affairs is the norm in 
developing countries where there are high levels of social exclusion and 
where walkers and NMT users in outdoor, public spaces, are extremely 
marginalized. This is not merely a technical error, but is due to their 
lack of influence in the political system, as compared to elite and middle 
class car owners (who do a fair bit of walking, but usually in air con 
private spaces such as shopping malls) who have better access and 
participation, and representation in politics. Undoubtedly it will be the 
insistent and vigorous political efforts of advocates such as yourselves 
which could lead to better conditions for all Indians in the future.

>On the other hand pavements are removed or drastically
>narrowed down. Pedestrians die in road accidents.
>Cycling is discouraged.  At one time, Mumbai Traffic
>Policeman would appprehend a cyclist and remove air
>from both tyres.  We had to take up this invasion on the
>right to cycle at the highest level and wait for 6 months
>to reform the Police.

Some Sustran-discussers would probably take issue with your first statement 
below.

>It is good to see that the World Bank lays down policies
>to assist cyclists, pedestrians, non-motorised traffic.  In
>Mumbai, the Bank wants to assist Mumbai Authorities


Alternatively, it could be surmised that while democratic, Mumbai's 
political system provides less representation for poor people who would 
benefit from pavements and cycling safety. Other possibilities could be 
that large road projects generate significant patronage opportunities and 
visible signs that the government is "doing something" while widening 
pavements might take away road space from rich motorists who will complain 
to their local political representatives. I would guess that affordability 
likely plays a small role, if at all in these calculations.

In the Mumbai case, it could be surmised that the poor
>countries cannot afford constructing pavcments or
>providing cycling safety. Why not support pavementless
>dangerous roads only?

The document I referred to (Poverty and Urban Transport, prepared by a 
French team) is located at the World Bank's Urban Transport Strategy Review 
website (go to www.worldbank.org, then to Development Topics, then to Urban 
Transport, then to Urban Transport Strategy Review). It is one of a number 
of excellent consultant reports commissioned by the World Bank (and all 
available in full as PDF documents online) as inputs to the formulation of 
their strategy, which is currently in draft form. However, while you and I 
may wish otherwise, the contents of that and some of the other reports are 
not necessarily Bank policy, although they probably reflect the 
inclinations of some individuals within that institution. It is my 
understanding that the policies will emerge from the final Strategy paper, 
and that comments on the strategy paper are still being taken, so it may be 
worth making some submission in order to influence Bank policy.

Best of luck,

Craig


>Craig, Can we request you to guide us as to how we can
>access the Bank policy document? Best wishes.
>
>Priya Salvi and Kisan Mehta
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Craig Townsend <townsend at central.murdoch.edu.au>
>To: <sustran-discuss at jca.ax.apc.org>
>Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2002 8:54 AM
>Subject: [sustran] Re: transit in Mexico city
>
>
> > Dear Kanu,
> >
>  While bicycles are good for the poor, it is worth noting that in
>the places such as Tokyo and Amsterdam where cycling and
>walking are prominent and well-integrated with other forms
>of urban transport, they are used by rich men (and women)
>as well. This point is made in the document "Poverty and
>  Urban Transport" (available online) prepared for the World
>Bank Urban Transport Strategy Review. They advise that
>"the attention paid to non- motorized transport has to be
>viewed as an element in a more global policy where efforts
>are made also on public transport supply. So that these
>  policies have a chance to be implemented successfully, it is
>essential that they do not solely concern the poorest but also
>other population categories."
> >
> > Craig
> >
> > At 04:28 PM 02/04/02 +0530, you wrote:
> > >Dear Paula,
> > >
>I have been following the exchanges re Cycling and Mexico which is 2400 M
>above MSL. Even in Khatmandu (Nepal) I was reading that they are trying to
>provide Cycleways. Even as an experimentation they have started a Mountain
>Cycle mounted Police for controlling traffic.
> > >
> > >A bicycle is a poor man's vehicle and it also lends mobility to the youth
> > >
> > >Kanu
> > >
> > >Kanu H J Kamdar
> > >
> > >Tel: +91 22 4010041
> > >Fax: +91 22 4021590
> > >E Mail: hjk @rincon.net <mailto:hjk at rincon.net>
> >
> > ________________________________________________
> > Craig Townsend
> > Institute for Sustainability & Technology Policy
> > Murdoch University
> > South Street, Murdoch
> > Perth, Western Australia 6150
> > tel: (61 8) 9360 6278 fax: (61 8) 9360 6421
> > email: townsend at central.murdoch.edu.au



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