[sustran] Re: Fwd: Worldwide Grist on Bogota

[kisan mehta]

Dear Sustran friends,

Our authorities- Maharashtra State Government, Indian 
Railways,  Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development 
Authority, Mumbai Municipality, Traffic Police etc are 
anxious to develop a traffic system in Mumbai (12
million residents) based on pavementless carriageways, 
elevated roads, flyovers etc to help private motorists at 
public cost.  These programmes cause severe hardship 
to the common man.  As if this is not enough, the 
government is out to construct Sea Link costing (not 
disclosed) cost of Rs 10 billion (Ind Rs 48 make a US $)  

The World Bank is all set to legitimise this flamboyant 
Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) by extending
a loan to the resource strapped government which  has 
withdrawn social welfare programmes in education and
public health on the grounds of paucity of funds.  
Motorists will pay anything for the facilities and the 
burden will fall on common man. 
   
Mumbai has the highest road fatality rate in the world. 
Pedestrians form 81% of the fatalieis. Ministers and 
bureaucrats use govt limousinces with blaring lights.  
So they are not affected by rising road accident rate. 

We wish to do a last ditch effort to bring sense to the 
authorities.  We thought we shall place verious 
untraditional programmes similar to what have worked 
in Curitoba,  Bogota and elsewhere to promote walking, 
cycling, public transport etc.  We seek detailed info on 
these programmes.  Many of you are intimately involved 
and follow such programmes.  Can you kindly forward 
data to us through email, published literature. etc. 

Our authorties feign ignorance to data on email, fax 
etc to avoid public exposure.   Thanks in advance.
Best wishes.

Kisan Mehta  mailto:kisansbc at vsnl.com
and Priya Salvi  priya_salvi at yahoo.com
Save Bombay Committee
620 Jame Jamshed Road, Dadar East, 
Mumbai 400 014 India
Tel: 00 91 22 414 9688
Fax:00 91 22 415 5536