[sustran] Re: Bangkok Car free day- who can ride motorised and who cannot?

[Brendan Finn]

Carlos, 

I guess the key question is what you want to achieve with a car-free day (or whatever you choose to call it) : 

a) A day of relief and relative quiet by taking as much as possible off the roads. Of course, this is not something that can be done on a day-in-day-out basis, since people and goods must move. 

b) A demonstration of a practical alternative mobility scenario for Bangkok.

If you are seeking (a), then you get everything possible off the streets. 

If you are seeking (b), then you take out only the private cars. If you could succeed in removing 100% of the private cars for a day, and leaving everything else, then perhaps you could get some answers to two key questions : 

1) Can the city function without the private car, and are the alternatives sufficient for the people who are displaced?

2) To what extent is the car the problem, and do you have to cut deeper into other means of transport as well ?

I don't see any point in giving free rides on the buses. If the streets move more freely on a car-free day, then that's already a big value-added to bus users and shows them they can get better service quality for their money. It would also demonstrate to the operators the potential cost savings while safeguarding their revenue. 

Good luck with the initiative.


Brendan.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
>From Brendan Finn, ETTS Ltd.   e-mail : etts at indigo.ie   tel : +353.87.2530286
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Carlos F. Pardo 
  To: 'Asia and the Pacific sustainable transport' 
  Sent: Tuesday, July 05, 2005 10:23 AM
  Subject: [sustran] Bangkok Car free day- who can ride motorised and who cannot?


  Dear all,

   

  I was just asked a question that I think is worth asking to more people before answering it. I have been in the (rather difficult) process of helping Bangkok officials try to organize a car-free day in their city. They have posed may questions, and most of them are basically "textbook", so there's no problem. But after a while of discussing they asked me if motorcycles should or should not be allowed to move during a car free day. My inmediate answer would be no, since a motorcycle is also dangerous (more than a car, I would say), polluting (mostly if it's two-stroke, but polluting nonetheless) and motorised! However, and to a great extent in Asia, a lot of low income people use motorcycles as their main mode of transport, sometimes even taking their wife and kids (2 or three of them!) in the same vehicle (allegedly because they don't have the means to pay for a very low transport fare).

   

  Also, though officials didn't ask about it, I was thinking if it would also be necessary to prohibit circulation of tuk tuks (three-wheeled motorised taxis), since they would also be a highly informal service that would pose the same threats of motorcyles (same engine, similar lack of safety, etc).  As I said before, an inmediate reaction to these questions would be a strict "no", but since current transport conditions and affordability of a transport fare is an issue, I don't think the answer could come out so lightly.

   

  Another option would be to think that simply Bangkok is not ready for a car-free day, which I sometimes also feel is the answer. but then again it would be backing up too soon. I have also thought that maybe Bangkok could start simply by developing car-free Sundays or car-free areas (if not at the same time), since the complete closing of roads to all cars seems to give heart attacks to all the people whom I have talked to (and most of them work in the "nonmotorised" section of the traffic and transportation division). Also, giving free rides in public buses is almost completely out of the question, unless we looked for funding from an international organisation. difficult to get before September 22nd.

   

  So, what would you do? 

   

  Best regards,

   

  Carlos F. Pardo

  Project Coordinator

  GTZ Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP)

  Room 0942, Transport Division, UN-ESCAP

  ESCAP UN Building

  Rajadamnern Nok Rd.

  Bangkok 10200, Thailand

  Tel: +66 (0) 2 - 288 2576

  Fax: +66 (0) 2 - 280 6042

  Mobile: +66 (0) 1 - 772 4727

  e-mail: carlos.pardo at sutp.org

  Website: www.sutp.org

  ___________________________________

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