[sustran] News Flash #37: Transport in the 'Global South'

[SUSTRAN Network Secretariat]

Sustainable Transport Action Network for Asia and the Pacific
(the SUSTRAN Network)
P.O. Box 11501,  50748 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
E-mail: <sustran at po.jaring.my>
URL: http://www.malaysiakini.com/sustran


SUSTRAN News Flash #37		8 March 2000
News update on people-centred, equitable and sustainable transport
with a focus on countries in the 'Global South'.

CONTENTS
1.	Invitation to SUSTRAN Network Assembly meeting
2.	Community Action Guide to transport issues
3.	Pedicabs under attack in Jakarta: activists arrested
4.	Major new urban transport data publication
5.	Bogotá makes history with Car Free Day
6.	World Car-Free Day: a proposal
7.	Anti-smoke belcher campaign in Manila
8.	Delhi debates diesel versus CNG
9.	Mumbai evictions of railway slum-dwellers
10.	Bicycle donations to East Timor
11.	Jakarta government seeks NGO input on traffic restraint plan
12.	Wanted: Best Practice urban transport examples
13.	RESOURCES
14.	INTERNET RESOURCES
15.	EVENTS
16.	Quick quotes


PLEASE RECOMMEND SUSTRAN NEWS FLASHES TO A FRIEND
Do your colleagues and friends with an interest in transport issues receive
SUSTRAN News Flashes?  PLEASE PASS THIS EDITION ON TO THEM AND INVITE THEM
TO JOIN.  Or tell us their contact details and we can send them an
invitation.  



1. INVITATION TO SUSTRAN NETWORK ASSEMBLY MEETING

The SUSTRAN Network is hoping to hold a meeting of members of the SUSTRAN
Assembly in Jakarta on June 1, 2000.  The SUSTRAN Assembly is the core
formal membership of the SUSTRAN Network. The meeting is being arranged in
order to tie in with the Conference on Sustainable Transportation & Clean
Air, being held in Jakarta from May 29 to 31. 

ALL CURRENT MEMBERS OF THE SUSTRAN ASSEMBLY who can attend on those dates
(May 29 to 1 June) are urged to IMMEDIATELY contact us
(sustran at po.jaring.my) so that we can try to arrange funding to get you to
these meetings in Jakarta. See http://www.malaysiakini.com/sustran/net.html
for the list of current SUSTRAN Assembly members.  

If you are already funded to attend or if you can fund yourself then this
would be very helpful. The Registration fee for the Conference on
Sustainable Transportation & Clean Air is US$300 (if paid before 10 May
2000) and US$350 (if paid after 10 May 2000).  

You are not a member of the SUSTRAN Assembly? Do not despair! Other
organisations that are active in promoting people-centred, equitable and
sustainable transport in developing countries can apply to join the SUSTRAN
Assembly and apply to attend the meetings in Jakarta (subject to certain
conditions). Please contact us quickly to apply and to discuss the options
for getting your representative to the meetings. Again, if you can fund
yourself it would be very helpful.

We need to move quickly if additional fundraising becomes necessary so
please respond quickly - at the latest by 20 March, 2000. 



2. COMMUNITY ACTION GUIDE TO TRANSPORT ISSUES

The SUSTRAN Network's new book, entitled "Taking Steps: A Community Action
Guide to People-centred, Equitable and Sustainable Transport" has just been
published.  This 120-page book provides a reference and guide to
people-centred, equitable and sustainable urban transport. It is written
especially to demystify urban transport issues for non-experts.  The focus
is on developing countries, especially in Asia. 

PLEASE CONTACT THE SUSTRAN NETWORK SECRETARIAT (sustran at po.jaring.my) FOR
DETAILS ON HOW TO ORDER. 

The Guide includes introductions to:  
*   Why we should worry about urban transport 
*   Basic principles of people-centred, equitable and sustainable transport
*   What is happening in Asian urban transport
*   How we can move towards better urban transport (with examples)
*   What we can do (as communities, organisations, businesses and individuals)
*   Tools for action (A to Z of transport terms, directory of contacts,
lists of readings and web resources)

The SUSTRAN Network runs on a tiny budget but we are able to provide a very
limited number of free copies to non-profit organisations who cannot afford
to pay. For all others, the minimum contribution per copy is RM 30 (inside
Malaysia) or US$ 15 (from outside Malaysia). These contributions include
the cost of postage and handling. 



3. PEDICABS UNDER ATTACK IN JAKARTA: ACTIVISTS ARRESTED 

There have been dramatic developments in the campaign to persuade the
Jakarta authorities to allow becaks (pedicabs) to continue to operate in
Jakarta (see previous report in SUSTRAN News Flash #35, Dec 11, 1999).  On
17 February six becak drivers representing some 130 fellow drivers lodged a
class-action civil lawsuit against Governor Sutiyoso demanding that the
governor allow pedicab drivers to operate in housing complexes and markets
in the capital. The filing of the lawsuit was witnessed by 150 pedicab
drivers. The pedicab drivers allege that Governor Sutiyoso was inconsistent
in his policy on pedicabs in the city. Bylaw No. 11/1988 rules that
pedicabs are banned in the city, but on June 25 last year, Governor
Sutiyoso decided to allow pedicab drivers to operate in the city due to the
economic crisis. However, shortly afterward the governor reversed his
decision leading to the confiscation of numerous pedicabs by city
officials, sometimes through violence. "Even President Abdurrahman Wahid
said on Jan. 23 that pedicabs were allowed to operate in housing complexes
here," the lawsuit says.

On Monday 28 February, several activists, including Ms Wardah Hafidz from
Urban Poor Consortium (UPC)and Mr Edi Saidi, Mr Afrizal, Mr Congki, and Mr
Anto were arrested by Jakarta Police outside the Presidential Palace for
demonstrating with about 100 becak drivers against the Governor's policies
on becaks. They were charged and convicted of participating in an "illegal"
rally. More than 200 becak drivers showed up at Tuesday's hearing in
support of the defendants. The defendants rejected all the charges, denying
the legality of the 1998 law. "The law is a product of a regime that didn't
appreciate its residents' rights to deliver their opinion," said Wardah. 

Please write letters urging that (1) pedicabs be allowed to operate in
housing areas and markets of Jakarta; (2) that confiscations of pedicabs
should stop (at least pending the outcome of the pedicab drivers' law
suit); and (3) that the pedicab drivers' right to demonstrate be respected.
Letters can be sent to:  
Mr. Sutiyoso, Gubernur Kepala Daerah Tingkat I Jakarta
Jl. Merdeka Selatan No.8-9, Jakarta 10110, Indonesia. Fax:+62(21)389-8653
and 
DPRD Jakarta (Jakarta Regional House of Representative)	
Jl. Kebon Sirih No. 18, Jakarta Pusat, Indonesia.  Fax: +62(21) 350-8781  

[Contact: INFORTRANS (Indonesian NGO Forum for Transportation which
includes WALHI, UPC, LpiST, YLBHI, ISJ, ICEL, YLKI, and PELANGI
Indonesia.), Jalan Danau Tondano A4, Pejompongan, Jakarta 10210, Indonesia.
Tel: (62-21)-571-9360, 573-2503. Fax: (62-21)-573-2503. Email:
vera at pelangi.or.id].



4. MAJOR NEW URBAN TRANSPORT DATA PUBLICATION

Recently published "AN INTERNATIONAL SOURCEBOOK OF AUTOMOBILE DEPENDENCE IN
CITIES, 1960-1990" by Jeff Kenworthy and Felix Laube, with Peter Newman,
Paul A. Barter, Tamim Raad, Chamlong Poboon and Benedicto Guia (Jr).
University Press of Colorado, 737 pages, 130 colour maps, 29 tables, 35
illustrations; ISBN 0-87081-523-7, US$125.00, JULY, 1999. 

This book provides a large reliable digest of urban data about land use,
private and public transportation, energy use in transport, environment and
economics. The book sets out detailed data on forty-six metropolitan areas
in the United States, Australia, Canada, western Europe, and Asia for 1960,
1970, 1980, and 1990. The Asian cities covered are: Hong Kong, Singapore,
Tokyo, Bangkok, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Seoul, Surabaya. Each city
represented in the book has its own set of colour maps showing the various
territorial boundaries and shape of the metropolitan area, the urbanised
areas of the region, the freeway system and all the fixed track rail and
bus-way systems. [Contact: University Press of Colorado, Fax +1 303 530
5306 or  Darrin Pratt, Email: prattd at stripe.colorado.edu]



5. BOGOTÁ MAKES HISTORY WITH CAR FREE DAY 

Bogotá became the first major city in the "Global South" to hold a car free
day on Thursday, 24 February 2000. Mayor Enrique Penalosa declared Thursday
an auto-free day to force people to think about improving life in this
traffic-choked metropolis. From 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., all private
vehicles, including private cars, motorcycles, big trucks and sport utility
vehicles, were barred from the capital. Very few drivers defied the order.
The Mayor led a morning caravan of cyclists through quiet streets.
Newscasts showed government ministers boarding buses. City Hall said
traffic accidents fell from the daily average of 120 to 25, a drop of 79
percent. There were no injuries. Bogotá, a city of 6.4 million people,
averages three traffic fatalities a day. Surveys show 65 percent of Bogotá
residents supported the car-free day. The Bogotá authorities have had
impressive help and support from many supporters around the world, rallied
especially by Eric Britton of Ecoplan in Paris. For more details see
http://www.ecoplan.org/carfreeday/ or contact Eric.Britton at ecoplan.org



6. WORLD CAR-FREE DAY: A PROPOSAL

If you are inspired by Bogotá's example, CAR BUSTERS in Prague
(carbusters at ecn.cz) has put out a proposal for an annual World Car-Free Day
for September 21. The idea is to expand upon the September 22 governmental
European Car-Free Day, which will be truly European for the first time this
year. The World Car-Free Day would fall on the day before, a Thursday,
which, according to years of experience with car-free days, is the optimum
day on which to hold such an event (see http://www.ecoplan.org/carfreeday/
for the report "Thursday: Breakthrough Strategies for Reducing Car
Dependence in Cities"). Every aspect of this proposal is up for debate,
elaboration and change. No one is going to copyright World Car-Free Day; it
will be up to everyone to decide locally what they want to do with the
idea. Please send in your feedback!



7. ANTI-SMOKE BELCHER CAMPAIGN IN MANILA

A campaign against smoke belchers, as traffic polluting vehicles are known
in the Philippines, was launched at the Asian Development Bank on 21
February. The campaign includes government authorities, heads of major bus,
jeepney and truck organisations and representatives from civil society. The
Bantay Usok (Guard Against Smoke) campaign is part of the ongoing US$300
million ADB-supported Metro Manila Air Quality Improvement Sector
Development Program. A Swiss NGO, Swisscontact, will also begin a program
to help transport organisations to improve vehicle maintenance in order to
reduce fuel consumption and emission levels. An official website for the
Implementing  Rules and Regulations of the Clean Air Act
(http://www.hangin.org) was also launched. At least 70 percent of Manila's
air pollution is caused by traffic. [Source: press release from the Asian
Development Bank]. 



8. DELHI DEBATES DIESEL VERSUS CNG

There is heated debate in Delhi over moves to allow the registration of
only commercial vehicles running on compressed natural gas (CNG). The
Supreme Court in 1998 ordered that all buses over eight years old should
move to CNG from April 1, 2000 and all buses should be running on CNG by
March 2001. The court is also hearing a case recommending a ban on private
diesel cars in Delhi. The Delhi government has followed up on the court
order with a proposal to register only buses, taxis and autorickshaws that
run on CNG from April 1, 2000. 

In response, scientists at the TATA Energy Research Institute (TERI) have
said that this proposal will promote global warming. The Director of the
Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in New Delhi, Mr Anil Agarwal, has
attacked the TERI position. He points to particulate matter as the city's
main air pollution problem. Pollution due to PM 10 particles - particles
with a diameter less than 10 microns - reach 820 microgrammes per cubic
metre on some days in the city's ambient air. He points out that even in US
states like New York and California (which contribute to global warming at
rates many times higher than Delhi) local health concerns have taken
precedence over global concerns leading to the purchase of more CNG buses.
He alleges that TERI is acting as a part of the automobile lobby's efforts
to block the introduction of CNG in Delhi. Mr Agarwal points out that a
TATA company - TELCO - is a leader in the pro-diesel lobby. 
[Contact: Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), 41 Tughlakabad
Institutional Area, New Delhi 110-062, India. Tel: 91 11 698-1110,
698-1124, 698-3394, 698-6399, Fax: 91 11 698 5879, Email: cse at cseindia.org,
Web: http://www.cseindia.org or www.oneworld.org/cse]



9. MUMBAI EVICTIONS OF RAILWAY SLUM-DWELLERS

We have learned with great alarm from the Asian Coalition and its partner
federation in India, the Railway Slum Dwellers Federation (RSDF), about
recent evictions of slum dwellers living along the railway tracks in
Mumbai. This is particularly disappointing since over the past five years
Mumbai's state-of-the-art resettlement policy for railway slum dwellers has
been watched with great enthusiasm around the world. The effective working
partnerships between urban poor federations and various government agencies
have exemplified enlightened governance. The model resettlement project
along the Central Railway line at Kanjurmarg has been presented as a case
study at the United Nations World Habitat Awards in Japan, and is scheduled
to be visited by US President Mr. Bill Clinton later this year. Maharashtra
State Law guarantees every slum dweller residing in their community before
the cut-off date of January 1, 1995 protection against eviction and
entitles them to a secure, 225-sq. ft. dwelling on the same site, or close
by. It is therefore shocking to learn of the eviction of hundreds of poor
railway slum families whom this enlightened resettlement policy should be
protecting and supporting. 

Please send letters and faxes to the Maharashtra State Government urging
them to stop these illegal evictions at once, and to go back to the
negotiating table with their partners in the RSDF, SPARC, the Railways and
the SRA. The letters should be addressed to: 
1.  Mr. Bongirwar, Chief Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, Mantralaya,
Mumbai,  INDIA
Fax Number :  (91 22) 202-8594
2.  Dr. Joshi, Urban Development Secretary, Government of Maharashtra,
Mantralaya, Mumbai,  INDIA
Fax Number (91 22) 282-9282
3.  Mr. Thamal, Housing Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, Mantralaya,
Mumbai,  INDIA
Fax Number :  (91 22) 202-5939

[Source: Somsook Boonyabancha, Secretary General, Asian Coalition for
Housing Rights (ACHR), 73 Soi Sonthiwattana 4, Ladprao 110, Ladprao Rd,
Bangkok 1030, Thailand. Tel [662] 538 0919, Fax: +662 539 9950, Email:
achrsec at email.ksc.net].



10. BICYCLE DONATIONS TO EAST TIMOR

A man from Darwin, Mark Pate, visited Dili twice in early February to
distribute about 650 bicycles donated by ordinary Australians. Mr Pate says
he has had an excited response to the bikes in Dili and has sent them to
rural areas of East Timor as well. He hopes to supply 200,000 bikes to East
Timorese residents during the next five years. [Source: Australian
Broadcasting Commission (ABC), 10 Feb 2000]. 



11. JAKARTA GOVERNMENT SEEKS NGO INPUT ON TRAFFIC RESTRAINT PLAN

The Jakarta government has announced it will include NGO and community
representatives in a working group to decide how best to restrain traffic
in the city centre. The city administration will establish a working group
to seek a replacement for the current traffic restraint system, known as
the three-in-one policy, under which vehicles entering the restricted zone
in peak hours must have at least 3 occupants. An evaluation of the
three-in-one policy was held because it has encouraged children to serve as
traffic "jockeys" - offering themselves as passengers for a small fee. The
working group's members will consist of city officials, city councillors,
community leaders, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), including the
Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI). [Source: The Jakarta Post, City
News, March 03, 2000]. 



12. WANTED: BEST PRACTICE EXAMPLES

The United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the
Municipality of Dubai, UAE are again inviting submissions to participate in
the 2000 Dubai International Award for  Best Practices in Improving the
Living Environment. In June 2000, 10 initiatives will be selected to
receive the  Dubai Award which includes a US$ 30,000 cash prize, a
commemorative certificate and a trophy. They are particularly interested in
seeing examples of actions and initiatives in transportation. The deadline
for submissions is 31 March 2000. [Contact: Bill Kagai, Consultant, Best
Practices & Local Leadership Programme, UNCHS (Habitat), P.O. Box 30030,
Nairobi, Kenya. Tel: +254 2 623456, Fax: +254 2 623080, E-Mail:
bestpractices at unchs.org, Web: http://www.bestpractices.org or
http://www.sustainabledevelopment.org/blp/awards/ ]. 



13. RESOURCES

See item 2 above for announcement of the SUSTRAN Network's new book "TAKING
STEPS: A Community Action Guide to People-centred, Equitable and
Sustainable Transport."

See item 4 above for announcement of "An International Sourcebook of
Automobile Dependence in Cities, 1960-1990" by Jeff Kenworthy and Felix
Laube, et al. 

"Pedestrian and Bicycle Planning: A Guide to Best Practices" by the
Victoria Transportation Policy Institute. Available for download at
http://www.vtpi.org then select "Pedestrian and Bicycle Issues".

"Street Reclaiming - Creating Livable Streets and Viable Communities" by
David Engwicht, Pluto Press 1999.  "David Engwicht has put together a truly
inspiring book full of practical ideas to get things changed, and very
useful background information to help you on the way", says Caroline
Winstone in the NZ Sustainable Transport Network Newsletter, Issue 9,
February/March 2000. To order go to http://www.lesstraffic.com/

"Balancing the Load: Proceedings of the Asia and Africa Regional Seminars
on Gender and Transport", International Forum for Rural Transport and
Development. June and July 1999. [Contact: The Forum Secretariat, c/o
Intermediate Technology, 150 Southampton Row, London WC1B 5AL, UK. Email:
ifrtd at gn.apc.org, Web:  http://www.gn.apc.org/ifrtd ].

CHANGE OF ADDRESS for Car Busters Magazine:
CAR BUSTERS Magazine and Resource Centre, Krátká 26, 100 00 Praha 10, Czech
Republic. Tel: +(420) 2-781-08-49 ; Fax: +(420) 2-781-67-27, Email:
carbusters at ecn.cz,  Web: http://www.antenna.nl/eyfa/cb

"Toolkits for Activists: A User's Guide to the Multilateral Development
Banks". Download a full-text version of the Toolkits from
http://www.bicusa.org or print out an order form from there. Spanish,
Russian, Bahasa Indonesian, and Khmer versions are being prepared [Contact:
Bank Information Center, 733 15th Street NW, Suite 1126, Washington, DC
20005, USA. phone: +(1 202) 737-7752, fax: +(1 202) 737-1155, e-mail:
info at bicusa.org, web site: http://www.bicusa.org ]. 

"Handbook of Transport Modelling" edited by David Hensher and Kenneth
Button. Elsevier Science, October 2000, ISBN 0-08-043594-7. US$162. (Part
of the Handbooks in Transport series). [Contact: Elsevier Science
http://www.elsevier.nl ].

"A UN Guide for NGOs" (contacts and services available in the United
Nations system). Sept. 1999. [Contact: Tony Hill, UN NGO Liaison Service,
Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. Tel: +41 22 917 2076, Fax:
+41 22 917 0049, ngls at unctad.org]

IATSS Research journal from Japan recently had an excellent special issue
on Non-Motorised Transport (vol 23 no 2, 1999). Find out more at
http://injurypreventionweb.org/iatss/iatss.htm



14. INTERNET RESOURCES

The SUSTRAN-DISCUSS list on the promotion of "people-centred, equitable and
sustainable transport with a focus on developing countries (the 'Global
South')". Contact sustran at po.jaring.my for more information on how to join.
Visit the on-line archives via http://www.malaysiakini.com/sustran
then click on the menu-bar link "sustran-discuss". 

"Traffic Calming State of the Practice" downloadable at the web site of the
Institute of Transportation Engineers: http://www.ite.org

"Right to Clean Air" POSTER exhibition at the Auto Expo in New Delhi The
Centre for Science and Environment's (CSE's). The entire exhibition (about
26 colour posters) can be downloaded from:
http://www.oneworld.org/cse/html/cmp/cmp5autoexpo.htm

UK anti-speed campaign: http://www.speed-campaign-info.fsnet.co.uk
Includes "Speed Kills" in HTML and Word formats; "The Benefits of slower
speeds" in Word and HTML; and the colourful leaflet "Why Reduce Speeds" as
Acrobat PDF and scanned images.

"Bus rapid transit" demonstration project in the United States:
http://brt.volpe.dot.gov/

"Developing a Walking Strategy". Downloadable report from the UK Department
of the Environment Transport and the Regions:
http://www.local-transport.detr.gov.uk/walk/walk.htm



15. EVENTS

UITP conference: "Public Transport - The Challenge". 10-11 April 2000,
Mexico City, Mexico. [International Association of Public Transport (UITP),
Avenue Herrmann-Debroux 17, B-1160 Brussels, Belgium, Tel +32 2 673 6100 -
Fax +32 2 660 1072, E-mail: administration at uitp.com, URL:
http://www.uitp.com ]

"Towards Car Free Cities Avoiding the Mistakes of the West." Conference,
Timisoara, Romania, April  10-15, 2000. [Contact: OP nr 12, CP 986, 1900
Timisoara, Romania. Tel  :+40-56-183418, Fax :+40-56-183418, E-mail:
tpn at banat.ro]. 

"CODATU IX World Congress on Urban Transportation" - central theme: Urban
Transportation and the Environment, Mexico City 11-14 April 2000 [Contact:
CODATU IX Scientific Committee, Christian JAMET, 9/11, Av. De Villars 75007
Paris, France. Fax: +33 1 44 18 78 04, E-mail: christian.jamet at stp-paris.fr
or chazelle at entpe.fr, THE FINAL PROGRAMME IS AVAILABLE AT:
http://www.codatu.org ].

"Road Pricing Agenda - progressing the electronic pricing agenda",
Conference, 11-13 April 2000, Brisbane Australia. Presentations from World
bank, Singapore, Hong Kong, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Denmark and
France, and Australia. [Contact: Conference Secretariat,  Tel: +617 3854
1611, fax +617 3854 1507, E-mail: ozaccom at ozaccom.com.au]. 

EARTH DAY 2000 is on April 22 - many of the events around the world are
transport related. [Contact: Earth Day Network, 91 Marion St. Seattle, WA
98104 USA. Tel: + 1.206.876.2000, Fax: + 1.206.682.1184, E-mail:
worldwide at earthday.net, Web: http://www.earthday.net ]. 

UN Millennium Forum, 22-26 May 2000 at United Nations headquarters. This is
part of the preparations for the UN's Millennium Assembly in September. The
complete preliminary program can be found at:
http://www.millenniumforum.org. deadline for applications to attend has
been extended to 31 March 2000. The Millennium Forum strives to solicit the
best thinking of civil society in all its sectors worldwide as they relate
to six broad themes: peace, the eradication of poverty, human rights,
sustainable development, globalisation, and "strengthening and
democratising" the United Nations. [The Millennium Forum, 866 United
Nations Plaza, Suite 120, New York, NY 10017, USA. Tel: 1-212-803-2522,
Fax: USA 212-803-2561, Email: mngof at bic.org]. 

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION: SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION & CLEAN
AIR, MAY 29 - 31, 2000, JAKARTA, INDONESIA. PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE CHANGED
DATES. [For more information contact: Sustainable Transportation and Clean
Air Conference Secretariat c/o Clean Air Project, Jakarta, Jalan Wijaya
XII, No. 44, 12160 Jakarta, Indonesia. Phone: +62 21 739 40 41, Fax: +62 21
722 30 37, E-mail: catc2000 at cbn.net.id]. 

"VELO MONDIALE 2000 World Bicycle Conference", June 18-22, 2000, Amsterdam,
The Netherlands. [Contact: Congress Organisation Services, PO Box 1558,
6501 BN Nijmegen,  The Netherlands, Fax: +31 24 360 1159,
http://www.velomondial2000.nl/ ]

Interface for Cycling Expertise (I-ce) is planning an Intensive Bicycle
Training Programme to follow the Velo Mondiale conference in the
Netherlands in June 2000. [For more information contact: I-ce,
Predikherenstraat 17,  3512 TL Utrecht, The Netherlands. Tel. +31 - 30 -
230 45 21, Fax  +31 - 30 - 230 45 21, Email: i-ce at cycling.nl, Web:
http://www.cycling.nl].

"Reinventing Mobility - Challenge of the 21st Century", June 24 - 27, 2000,
Bremen, Germany. Organised by Bremen initiative, the global campaign for
business-municipality partnership towards a sustainable future for cities.
[For further information: Ecolo-Ecology and Communication, Leher Heerstr.
102, D-28359 Bremen - Germany. Phone: +49-421-23.00.11.0;
Fax:+49-421-23.00.11.18; E-mail: conference2000 at bremen-initiative.de,
Visit http://www.bremen-initiative.de ] 

"UITP Melbourne 2000 Public Transport Conference Event",  8 - 13 October
2000, includes both the International Union of Public Transport (UITP)
Light Rail Conference and the Asia/Pacific Congress and City Transport
Exhibition. Additional information is available on the website of the
Government of Victoria (Australia) at: www.lightrail2000.vic.gov.au
[International Association of Public Transport (UITP), Avenue
Herrmann-Debroux 17, B-1160 Brussels, Belgium, Tel +32 2 673 6100 - Fax +32
2 660 1072, E-mail: administration at uitp.com, URL: http://www.uitp.com ]

"XI Panamerican Conference in Traffic and Transportation Engineering" ,
19-23 November,  2000, Gramado, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
[Contact: Dr. Luis Antonio Lindau, President of the Organising Committee,
Escola de Engenharia/UFRGS, Praça Argentina n.9 Sala 408, 90040-020 Porto
Alegre, Brasil. Tel: + 55 51 316 3596, Fax : + 55 51 316 4007, email:
panam at orion.ufrgs.br, Web: http://www.ufrgs.br/panam ]

Call for Papers for the 54th UITP International Congress to be held in
London, 20-25 May 2001.  International Exhibition of Public Transport -
City Transport 2001. London, England, 21-24 May 2001. In conjunction with
the 54th UITP International Congress. [International Association of Public
Transport (UITP), Avenue Herrmann-Debroux 17, B-1160 Brussels, Belgium, Tel
+32 2 673 6100 - Fax +32 2 660 1072, E-mail: administration at uitp.com, URL:
http://www.uitp.com ]

"9th World Conference on Transport Research (WCTR)" to be held at ASEM
International Convention Center, Seoul, July 22-27, 2001. Co-organisers:
Korean Society of Transportation & The Korea Transport Institute.  Deadline
for submission of abstracts April 15, 2000. [For further information,
contact: Secretariat of 9th WCTR Conference, The Korea Transport Institute,
2311 Daehwa-Dong, Ilsan-Gu, Koyang-city, Kyonggi-Do, 411-410, KOREA. Tel :
+82-344-910-3100, Fax: +82-344-910-3200, Email: wctr at cis.koti.re.kr, Web:
http://www.koti.re.kr/~wctr ]



16. QUICK QUOTES

An account of transportation issues faced by members of the Self Employed
Women's Association (SEWA) in and around Ahmedabad, India: 
"Women carry headloads of up to 40 kg and walking is the main mode of
transportation, with many of the women interviewed walking anywhere even
remotely accessible to cut transportation costs. Other modes of transport,
such as bus or rickshaw , are secondary to walking. Buses, the second most
important form of transportation to the women, are only used in
emergencies..."  Sangita Shrestova and Rekha Barve in "Balancing the Load:
Proceedings of the Asia and Africa Regional Seminars on Gender and
Transport", International Forum for Rural Transport and Development.


"MOTORISTS involved in road deaths will find themselves treated as murder
or manslaughter suspects under new instructions for police traffic
investigators. Officers will be taught techniques used by detectives in
murder hunts. They will be urged not automatically to regard fatalities as
accidents but look at possible criminal cases and gather evidence for
serious charges." The Times (UK), 17 Jan. 2000.


-----------------------------------------------------
Written and compiled by A. Rahman Paul Barter 

The Sustainable Transport Action Network for Asia & the Pacific
(the SUSTRAN Network) promotes and popularises people-centred,
equitable and sustainable transport with a focus on Asia and the Pacific

We rely on you, the participants in the network, for our news. Thank you to
everyone who has sent material. Please keep it coming. We welcome brief
news and announcements from all over the world.