[sustran] Re: Cities need mobility, not cars

[Morten Lange]

Dear Vinay,

Good article !

One comment that pops to mind is that some people talk of access, rather than mobility.  

For instance that would include improved access to services / shops by decentralising them. This can be done e.g. by urban planning including financial incentives that will influence where services are located. This as an addition to improving access for more effective and equitable modes. So access is improved not only by improving how many people get move about per /hour / per square-kilometer / per million dollar or Lakh /per unit of health or pollution.

The "Access-paradigm" also inherently takes into account the needs of different segments of the populations. That is, the access-paradigm as I have perceived it.

I might be out on a limb here, but take my chances, in order to get the opportunity to learn and discuss.

--
Regards / Kvedja
Morten Lange, Reykjavík


--- On Sat, 5/6/10, Vinay Baindur <yanivbin at gmail.com> wrote:

> From: Vinay Baindur <yanivbin at gmail.com>
> Subject: [sustran] Cities need mobility, not cars
> To: "CAF2" <citizens-action-forum at googlegroups.com>, "Hasire Usiru" <hasiruusiru at yahoogroups.com>, "Hu Gov" <hu_governance at googlegroups.com>
> Date: Saturday, 5 June, 2010, 11:30
> *URBAN ENVIRONMENT*
> 
> *Anumita Roychowdhury*, Centre for Science and Environment
> 
> *Cities need mobility, not cars*
> 
> Our cities are in a mess and the clutter will grow. Recent
> number crunching
> by global consulting firm McKinsey and Co. Llc predicts an
> urban population
> in India of 590 million by 2030—nearly twice the size of
> the current US
> population and 40% of the total projected Indian
> population. Cities, which
> account for 70% of India’s GDP (gross domestic product),
> will drive the
> economy. But these same cities are on a toxic spiral, urged
> on by growing
> wastefulness, energy use and car mania. The current
> obsession with car-based
> infrastructure and urban sprawl will only increase car
> dependency, travel
> distances, energy and the pollution intensity of travel.
> 
> The choking haze of pollution and growing illnesses are the
> scary evidence
> of urban growth. The International Energy Agency warns that
> cars will also
> drive energy demand. Currently, one-third of our urban
> population in three
> mega-cities accounts for nearly half of the carbon
> emissions from transport.
> Parking needs are devouring urban commons—10% of
> urbanized Delhi is wasted
> as parking spaces.
> 
> Can we make our cities livable? Make public health, urban
> design quality and
> community well-being the basis of this growth?
> 
> Our future depends on the choices we make today. And the
> choices are clear
> in our densely built cities, where the bulk of all travel
> trips have short
> distances—5-10km. In fact, walking and bicycling make up
> more than a quarter
> of all trips in major cities and greater than half in small
> towns. Public
> transport and para-transit modes meet more than three
> quarters of the
> passenger demand for motorized transport. Protect and scale
> up this
> strength, and ensure equity in allocation of road space to
> all users.
> 
> Make the change real. Leverage the emerging policy
> opportunities—reform-based agenda of the Jawaharlal Nehru
> National Urban
> Renewal Mission and the clean air action plans. Cities must
> deliver on
> public transport reforms, control pollution sources and
> pursue innovative
> measures to restrain the car bulge. There is no other way.
> 
> Look at Delhi. With less than a quarter of households
> owning cars, and
> despite the largest road network, life’s ebbed out of its
> streets. Road
> widening and flyovers have not helped.
> 
> The signpost is clear: Cities need mobility, not cars.
> Scale up alternative
> mobility choices, set the post-2010 road map to leapfrog
> vehicle technology,
> and redesign cities to promote safe mobility. Cities must
> interlink a full
> range of actions that form the big solution.
> 
> *Anumita Roychowdhury is associate director at Centre for
> Science and
> Environment.** Comment at feedback at livemint.com*
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