[sustran] Re: Sustran-discuss Digest, Vol 74, Issue 5

Simon Bishop simon.bishop at dimts.in
Fri Oct 9 14:23:54 JST 2009


Dear Hassan,

I do not underestimate the size of the task you are embarking upon and I wish you all the luck.  I was thinking about your question in some depth and it made me think that your task might be even harder than you think.  

In my experience it nearly always requires additional finance to have a 'quality' public transport network.  In Delhi I have been working as a consultant with Delhi Transit which has pushed the government to replace the existing bifurcated system of a state monopoly that runs quite inefficiently and requires regular top ups to be kept alive.  The other is a fully private 'Blueline' system that breaks even but, to do so requires cheap uncomfortable truck body buses running at high speed to capture as many passengers as possible.  

Delhi Transit borrowed heavily from the London model to develop a system of 17 zonal clusters in the city which would be franchised to the lowest cost bidder.  The bidder would collect a per km fee for each km run but in contrast to the state monopoly his/her performance would be measured by GPS and an Operational Control Centre with a system of rewards and penalties.  The fact was that this turned out to require government support, but it was much less than the 650 million pounds or so that is charged in London (back of the envelope figure = about 150 million pounds or 3 flyovers a year - the government are constructing 24 of these in the run up to the Commonwealth Games and already they are becoming saturated).  

The government has stalled on taking on the commitment so far because it says the charge is too much.  However, I would argue strongly, and suggest that you too strongly consider looking at and arguing for a performance-based bus system even if a subsidy is required.  

The first reason is that you will need quality performance to compete with private vehicles and you will need to pay for it.  Think of ways of raising the money like a cess on fuel or cross subsidization from parking charges, even like Bogota, support from carbon credits.  Taxing cars and motorbikes, I acknowledge, is difficult politically without a viable public transport system available, but, if a plan were constructed and in, say Year 2 a bus system was in place, it would be possible to commit to raising money from private vehicles in that year to pay back someone like the ADB or WB. 

The second reason is that the bus network will reduce costs elsewhere, which, as part of your project you should independently quantify (accidents, congestion, pollution, technology transfer, etc).  Even if you think that the government will say, "All very well, but....." you should think about 'playing the long game'.  There is fast approaching a time when even the elite will be beleaguered by long traffic jams and will start to realize that having a good bus system actually helps them drive around more easily in their government cars - in India they're Ambassadors, don't know what they are in Pakistan.  The elite will eventually come to realize a subsidy is a small price to pay for their comfort.

You could also mitigate some of the costs in the following ways.  I notice in India the preponderance of cycle rickshaws that are totally un-integrated in the public transit system.  At virtually zero cost you could use them as 'feeder routes' to BRT, thereby reducing the costs of running a bus-based service considerably and possibly employing more people.  You could 'upgrade' rickshaws in your contract specification so they are accessible, comfortable and desirable.  Another way to reduce costs would be to develop what we are trying to develop in Delhi, a BRT system that reduces ongoing costs by improving the efficiency of buses spending less time in traffic for instance and increasing revenues from a fast, competitive service.  

In the end I think we need to start asking the question, 'How much do we want to pay for a quality public transport system rather than 'How can we get it for free'?  'How can we mitigate some of these costs by taking advantage of the strengths already existing in Asian cities, para-transit, cheaper labor (non-existent in the Western world)?' Most importantly, 'How do we COMMUNICATE these needs to our politicians so they sanction the funds?'  You could start by looking at places like London that have turned round their loss of bus patronage and improved journey times by adopting quality performance models.

All the best,

Simon Bishop


-----Original Message-----
From: sustran-discuss-bounces+simon.bishop=dimts.in at list.jca.apc.org [mailto:sustran-discuss-bounces+simon.bishop=dimts.in at list.jca.apc.org] On Behalf Of sustran-discuss-request at list.jca.apc.org
Sent: Friday, October 09, 2009 8:31 AM
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Subject: Sustran-discuss Digest, Vol 74, Issue 5

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Today's Topics:

   1. Lahore Transport Company Revisited (Hassaan Ghazali)
   2. Wake up, Save Electricity by a small step (krc12353)


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Message: 1
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2009 13:14:22 +0600
From: Hassaan Ghazali <hghazali at gmail.com>
Subject: [sustran] Lahore Transport Company Revisited
To: cai-asia at lists.worldbank.org, sustran-discuss at list.jca.apc.org
Message-ID:
	<c4ee40d0910080014m3f4517b7odcccd8d2f8cb655a at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Friends,

With all due apologies for cross postings, I seek your assistance in a task
which has been assigned by the Honourable Chief Minister of the Punjab to
sort out some of the matters regarding the LTC which was formed earlier this
year.

We are reviewing the Motor Vehicles Ordinance, 1965 and amending them to
enable a sustainable financial and regulatory framework for the public
transport sector.

At this point I have two specific questions which are as follows:

(1) Is there any public transport system in existence which does not rely on
government subsidies or viability gap funding?

(2) If not, are there any examples or case studies of how financing has been
arranged and how this has been reflected in the tendering process for
procurement of buses?

Many thanks in advance.

Hassaan

Institutional Development Specialist
The Urban Unit
Planning & Development Department,
Government of the Punjab

A: 4-B Lytton Road, Lahore, Pakistan
T: 9213579-84 (Ext.116)
F: 9213585
M: 0345 455 6016
Skype: halgazel
http://www.urbanunit.gov.pk

*When conditions are right, things go wrong*


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Message: 2
Date: Thu,  8 Oct 2009 15:00:17 -0700 (PDT)
From: krc12353 <krc12353 at gmail.com>
Subject: [sustran] Wake up, Save Electricity by a small step
To: sustran-discuss at list.jca.apc.org
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SUSTRAN-DISCUSS is a forum devoted to discussion of people-centred, equitable and sustainable transport with a focus on developing countries (the 'Global South'). 

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