[sustran] SUTP Newsletter Jan-Feb 2010

[Sustianable Urban Transport Project]

**** SUSTAINABLE URBAN TRANSPORT PROJECT (SUTP) ****
**** Newsletter 01/10 - Jan - Feb 2010  ****

Important: A HTML Version of this newsletter is also available from http://www.sutp.org/newsletters/NL-Jan-Feb-10.html

***SUTP re-launches its website*** 

The Sustainable Urban Transport Project, has revamped their website and relaunched a new website. The project webpage is still accessible from http://www.sutp.org. It is expected that the new look and the features in the site will enable the users to find information on the site with ease. Technical arrangements have been made so that existing users of the SUTP website need not re-register but continue using their old usernames and passwords.

Comments and suggestions on further improving the website and/or the newsletter service will be most welcome. Please do drop a line at sutp[at]sutp.org.


*** New Publications ***

GTZ UPDATES LIST OF NEWSLETTERS AND DISCUSSION GROUPS

Is it hard to find information on transport? Did you ever wanted to spread the word about the upcoming workshop/conference that will be of great benefit to the transport community? Considering these issues the transport team at GTZ has compiled a list of Newsletters and Discussion Groups for Researchers, Policy-makers and Planners in the Transport Sector. The 14-page document at-tempts to list all the well-visited transport discussion groups and also sorts these groups into specific areas of focus.

In case you are aware of any other group that is active in transport please do send in your recommendations along with a small write up on the discussion group/Newsletter and the weblink where people can access the group/newsletter.
Submissions can be sent to sutp[at]sutp.org

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1911&Itemid=1&lang=en

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BRT PLANNING GUIDE NOW IN SPANISH

The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) has translated the Bus Rapid Transit Planning Guide into Spanish. The translation was made possible through a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

The Spanish version of the planning guide can also be downloaded from the SUTP website.
More information on the Spanish version of the planning guide can be obtained by visiting the ITDP’s website (http://www.itdp.org/index.php/microsite/guia_de_planificacion_de_sistemas_brt_spanish_bus_rapid_transit_guide/) 

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1911&Itemid=1&lang=en

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INTERNATIONAL FUEL PRICES 2009 - FULL EDITION

The 2009 International Fuel Prices report provides an overview of the retail prices of gasoline and diesel in more than 170 countries, discusses pricing policies, presents case studies on the impact of high and volatile fuel prices in 2007/2008 in developing countries and provides access to numerous additional resources. (114 pages, over 450 graphs and figures).

The document is available for download from the GTZ Fuel Prices website. Link: http://www.gtz.de/fuelprices

The document is available for download from the SUTP website. 

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1895&Itemid=1&lang=en

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ANALYSING TRANSPORT CHAPTERS OF TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ASSESSMENT

By the year 2050, the OECD/ITF predicts a 120% growth of global transport emissions on 2000 levels. Most of this increase will be caused by road transport in developing and emerging economies. Technology transfer has always been a key is-sue in international negotiations on climate change. Technology Needs Assessments (TNAs) are submitted by developing countries to the UNFCCC to outline their respective needs for transfer of and capacity building on GHG mitigating technologies. This paper aims at making a contribution to improving the provision of transport-related chapters in TNA Country Reports, and in particular the range of transferable technologies and measures in the transport sector. Available Country Reports were analysed with regard to the general coverage of transportation issues and the range of proposed transport technologies suitable for GHG mitigation. The results of the analysis emphasise the importance of "soft" and low-cost measures in the transport sector, such as public transport improvements, land use planning or non-motorised transport.

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1908&Itemid=1&lang=en

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COPENHAGEN ACCORD NAMA SUBMISSIONS: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE  TRANSPORT SECTOR

A week after the official deadline for submissions, the Bridging the Gap Initiative has analysed the Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) submissions for the Copenhagen Accord made by developing countries as of February 4, 2010 (see attachment). 16 out of 25 countries made explicit reference to the transport sector. This shows that transport gains increasingly importance on the agenda of climate change mitigation efforts. The analysis provides a comprehensive overview of NAMAs submitted and classifies them according to transport measures proposed. The results find that submissions vary to a great extent in detail and specification, but the inclusion of transport is already a very positive sign. This can be seen as the will to act and Bridging the Gap will help developing countries in the expansion of further transport NAMAs. The analysis will be updated as more NAMAs will be submitted. Stay tuned!

For further information, please visit http://www.transport2012.org.

This document can also be downloaded from the SUTP website.

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1909&Itemid=1&lang=en



*** Recent Events ***

DULT, GTZ AND IUT ORGANISE A ONE DAY WORKSHOP ON BUS RAPID TRANSIT IN BANGALORE

The Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT, Bangalore), the German Technical Co-operation (GTZ) and the Institute of Urban Transport (IUT) jointly organised a one day workshop on Bus Rapid Transit. The event was conducted on the 26 February 2010 at the Gold-finch Hotel, Bangalore. The funding for the event was provided by DULT while GTZ and IUT were the organising partners.

The workshop focussed on the importance of BRT systems and the ways for integrating and marketing the BRT system. Various examples from India and abroad were elaborated in the workshop. The speakers for the workshop include Dr. Dario Hidalgo and Mr. Madhav Pai from WRI-EMBARQ, Prof. Shivanand Swamy, CEPT University, Ms. Shreya Gadepalli, ITDP, Ms. Sonia Kapoor, IUT/UMTC and Mr. Santhosh Kodukula, GTZ. More than 100 participants at-tended the workshop. The participants were mainly from the local governments who held the position of engineers or executive engineers. Also present at the event was Mr. Ranganath, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Karnataka and advisor to the Chief Minister of Karnataka on Urban Affairs. The principal secretary Mr. Subhir Hari Singh, Mr. Shankarlinge Gowda, Secretary, Transport, Mr. Gaurav Gupta, Managing Director, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and Mr. Sayeed Zameer Pasha, Managing Director, Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) were also pre-sent and have chaired some sessions.

Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1912&Itemid=1&lang=en

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HOW TO ACHIEVE A GLOBAL LOW-CARBON TRANSPORT SYSTEM BY 2050

A session was held at the 89th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) looking at a study conducted by the Institute for Transportation Policy Studies (ITPS) titled “Transport in a Low Carbon Society”, which takes a backcasting approach to identify pathways to reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector by 50% compared to the total level of emissions in 2000, and make bold policy recommendations to achieve this goal.

The session was chaired by Professor Lee Schipper of UC Berkeley, and began with a presentation by Cornie Huizenga (ADB) on the overall framework to address transport and climate change, and Yuki Tanaka (ITPS) on the overall study.

They were followed by the authors of the regional studies (each of which analyses a major world region and collectively feed into the global study), who presented on the key approaches to mitigating emissions in their regions. These were given by Holger Dalkmann of TRL (Europe), Lee Schipper of UC Berkeley (North/Latin America) and Sophie Punte/Bert Fabian of CAI-Asia (ASEAN). The session concluded with a panel discussion with all the presenters.

Link: http://pressamp.trb.org/conferences/programs/session.asp?event=508&session=17068

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TRANSFORMING TRANSPORTATION DAY2: NEXT STEPS AFTER COPENHAGEN

The second day of the Transforming Transportation event in Washington on January 16, 2010, provided a forum for the transport, climate, and development communities to discuss the outcomes from the 2009 climate summit in Copenhagen. The event was organised by EMBARQ, the WRI Center for Sustainable Transport in partnership with the Asian Development Bank, the Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT) and was hosted at the Inter-American Development Bank.
 
Participants discussed the connection between climate change and other drivers of transport interventions in developing countries; and how the transport community can best en-gage in solving the challenges caused by climate change.
 
The Bridging the Gap Initiative launched its report on the out-comes of the Copenhagen climate conference. Manfred Breithaupt (GTZ) joined Urda Eichhorst (Wuppertal Institute) to present on findings from a recent GTZ publication on adaptation in the transport sector.
 
For the full agenda visit: http://www.embarq.org/en/day-2-next-steps-after-copenhagen
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AHMEDABAD, INDIA WINS THE 2010 SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT AWARD

The developing world is leap-frogging developed countries when it comes to urban transport, with the city of Ahmedabad, India, announced as winner of the 2010 Sustainable Transport Award for the successful implementation of Janmarg, India's first full bus rapid transit (BRT) system.

Ahmedabad's Janmarg BRT system is a sustainable model for the future of transportation in India, where a quarter of the world's population lives. "BRT systems can positively impact air quality if car and motorbike drivers start taking trips by bus," said Sophie Punte, Executive Director of the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities (CAI-ASIA). "This is particularly important in Asian cities, where air pollution levels are often far above guidelines of the World Health Organisation."

City residents have embraced their new BRT system; 18,000 daily passengers use Janmarg to commute to work, to school and elsewhere. In just a few months of operation, Janmarg has transformed the delivery of transit in South Asia. Janmarg uses innovative central median stations pulled away from the junctions. Bus stations feature passive solar design, an inexpensive way to keep stations naturally cool. The city is making continued efforts to be a leader in sustainable transport, including incorporating high quality pedestrian facilities in some corridors, as well as bicycle lanes. Ahmedabad has initiated car-free days and recently announced more.

For the first time in the six-year history of the Sustainable Transport Award, all of the nominees are cities in developing nations. The four honourable mentions go to Cali, Colombia, for transforming citywide BRT service with MIO; Curitiba, Brazil, for opening a new BRT line and city park on a former federal highway; Guadalajara, Mexico, for completing a full BRT system in less than two years and at an affordable cost; and Johannesburg, South Africa, for creating Rea Vaya, Africa's first BRT and the first public transit system that connects Soweto to the downtown district.

The city of Johannesburg, South Africa, opened the first full BRT in Africa, and completed the first mass transit in-vestments in the city since the fall of apartheid. Rea Vaya is the first public transit system to link the previously disadvantaged Soweto area to the central business district.

"In under three years, Johannesburg opened a state-of-the-art BRT system that uses the cleanest buses on the continent," said Manfred Breithaupt of Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH. "Johannesburg's accomplishment against enormous challenges and the up-grading of the corridor in Soweto with lighting and side-walks makes it an exceptional honourable mention."
(Complete article is available from the link below)


Link: http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1886&Itemid=1&lang=en

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*** Upcoming Events ***

22.03.2010 Rio de Janeiro, BR: World Urban Forum
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=415&Lang=en


28.03.2010 Abu Dhabi, AE: Road Safety on Four Continents 
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=419&Lang=en

03.05.2010 New York, USA: Committee on Sustainable Development
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=406&lang=en

25.05.2010 Lisbon,PT: 16th IRF World Road Meeting
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=361&lang=en

26.05.2010 Leipzig,DE: International Transport Forum 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=404&lang=en

28.05.2010 Bonn,DE: Resilient Cities 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=405&lang=en

02.06.2010 Hong Kong, CN: TRANSED 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=380&lang=en

07.06.2010 Brussels,BE: Transport Research Arena 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=391&lang=en

22.06.2010 Copenhagen, DK: Velo-City Global 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=421&lang=en

04.07.2010 Stuttgart, DE: Cities for Mobility World Congress 2010
http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&Itemid=56&func=details&did=401&lang=en


Important: A HTML Version of this newsletter is also available from http://www.sutp.org/newsletters/NL-Jan-Feb-10.html

Note: All the documents mentioned here are available for download from the SUTP website.                      
For registration please visit http://www.sutp.org/index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=registers&lang=