building liveable cities

Transcription

1 N building liveable cities + Combatting climate change North american mobility renaissance Holger Mette / El Panecillo hill and bus station, Quito Ecuador Deposit at 1080 Brussels - Price per copy : EUR 20 (+PP)

2 Mobility-based urban renewal The world s urban population is growing due to many factors, and as a result, so is the demand for urban mobility. To address this, the national government of India ran an urban renewal programme from , which heavily supported the creation of sustainable transport infrastructure. Public Transport International asked guest contributor, Dr. Ekroop Caur, current managing director of Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation, and recipient of India s Prime Minister s award for Excellence in Administration, to analyse the programme s successes and the valuable lessons it can offer others in the international public transport sector. Rameshng - Flickr Buses from the JnNURM programme help urban renewal in India (above and opposite page). All around the world, cities are emerging as centres of economic growth, each day attracting more people looking for a better life. This rapid urbanisation is especially true in India, where it is projected that by 2030, about 40% of the population will live in an urban area, and there will be at least 60 cities with a population over 1 million. Rapid urbanisation creates lots of challenges such as housing, sanitation, utilities and transportation. Already now, the demand for urban mobility is increasing across major cities in India. In the absence of investment and planning in the past, the public transport offering has been unable to keep up with this demand. In a move to recognise and act upon urban mobility issues, in 2006, the federal government of India introduced the National Urban Transport Policy (NUTP), setting the legislative framework for providing sustainable mobility for the future. National Urban Renewal Mission Soon after the NUTP, in 2009, the Indian Ministry of Urban Development embarked upon a massive programme of revitalising urban areas by allocating national funds to speed up the creation of much-needed infrastructure. Known as the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM), the programme was split into two phases and targeted cities with a population of at least 0.5 million. Both phases featured public transport as one of the most significant focus areas in the overall revitalization plan. This Indian national government programme of urban regeneration is a prime example of supporting cities to build sustainable transport infrastructure. 22 UITP - PTI 3/2016

3 Urban benefits In the JnNURM programme, the federal government gave one-time assistance to States for the purchase of buses for their urban transport system. Depending on city size, the federal government shared 35% to 90% of the purchase cost of the buses. In total, 24,760 buses were approved for 61 target cities, and launched organised bus transport service in 31 new cities. Nikhilb239 The broader objective of the programme was to have financially sustainable outcomes, thus, the release of funding was linked to the progress of each individual project. As a result, the bus financing projects led to public transport reforms in many cities. Transport scenario in India In India, buses are the principal mode of travel for city commuters in India, due to their relatively low operating costs and high passenger capacities compared to other forms of transport. Due to the lack of previous investment and planning, however, the overall public bus transport system has not been able to keep up with increasing urban mobility demands. Though there are around 1.6 million buses registered in India, only about 29,000 of them are city buses. As such, the public transport financing scheme in the JnNURM programme was meant exclusively for improving city bus and Bus Rapid Transit systems in target cities. Some of these reforms included the creation of Unified Metropolitan Transport Authorities, the setting up of urban transport funds and the creation of parking and advertisement policies. The funding programme helped to push for economic growth as bus manufacturers ramped up production and created employment opportunities. A second phase of the programme focused more on the introduction of articulated and hybrid buses, as well as a special emphasis on funding for infrastructure, such as bus depots and control rooms, and intelligent transport systems. National Urban Transport Policy (2006) Ensure coordinated planning for urban transport Ensure integrated land use & transport planning People focused & equitable allocation of road space Investments in public transport & Non Motorized modes Strategies for parking space and freight traffic movements Establish Regulatory mechanisms for a level playing field Innovative financing methods to raise resources Promote ITS, cleaner fuel & vehicle technologies for cities Build capacity to plan for sustainable urban transport Projects to demonstrate best practices in sustainable transport UITP - PTI 3/

4 Key successes for public transport The key successes of the programmes were: the creation of bus services in new cities, the introduction of modern and standard bus fleets in mega cities, the many urban transport reforms to make buses a preferred transport mode, the creation of market opportunities for private operators, and the switch from truck-chassis buses to more efficient and more environmentally friendly, purposely built buses. Growing pains Overall, the JnNURM programme was largely successful. However, there were several challenges faced, especially during the first phase of the programme: Detailed specifications for buses The government specified technical specifications under Urban Bus Specifications, UBS1 and UBS2. However, many cities did not have the technical expertise to translate these standards into efficient bus procurement outcomes. Inconsistent requirements for bus procurement Though cities prepared business plans for how they would use assets, many items written in the documents were not followed. For example, many operators have not comprehensively reviewed their bus routes or networks for several years. Consequently, they do not necessarily supply the routes that are most in demand. Support for infrastructure is critical to success of bus systems Many cities did not create supporting infrastructure like depots, terminal and bus stops. The absence of this needed infrastructure made it difficult to consistently provide good service. Sources of local financing Although the federal government shared 35% to 90% of procurement costs, there were still fund shortages at many Urban Local Bodies to pay the remaining amount. Maintenance costs Many cities procurement systems followed an upfront, least cost model and did not fully consider lifecycle costs encompassing repairs, maintenance, spare parts, and downtime. Lack of prior experience Though the programme helped introduce buses in many new cities, many local agencies had no prior experience to manage and operate the buses. As a result, a lot of private players had to intervene for the operation and maintenance of the buses. Ravikiran Rao The densely populated area of Hyderabad, India, was one of the areas that benefitted from the JnNURM bus programme (above and opposite page). 24 UITP - PTI 3/2016

5 SNEHIT Takeaways for the international public transport sector The bus financing scheme under the JnNURM programme was a game-changer. Although the combined results of Phase-I and Phase-II have been mixed, the national programme put the focus on public transport development at the state and city level. As most states and cities were initially reluctant to invest in public transport, the partial funding from federal government, along with proposed reforms, led to the introduction or improvement of urban bus transport systems. The funding for the procurement of buses and supporting infrastructure by a national government can help to improve local transport system, as well as bring much needed attention for the overall public transport sector. There are some key lessons that future bus financing schemes should take note of to be more effective. National governments should not limit their role to just funding, updating technical standards and implementing reforms. Some of cities need significant hand-holding for several activities, including procuring buses, enhancing supporting infrastructure, developing a governing structure, and making the transition from informal transport to managing a formal bus system. Further, it is important to bring structural reforms at city level first, before providing funds for the procurement of new buses. As for India, the national government should reintroduce bus financing schemes for cities and states, as many current fleets continue to age. According to estimates from ICRA Limited, an independent Indian credit rating and investment information agency, 100 of the largest Indian cities require approximately $15.4bn to procure 150,000 new buses and upgrade ancillary transport infrastructure. It will be difficult for State governments or local bodies to invest such a large sum without further federal government support. Dr. Ekroop Caur is currently Managing Director of Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC). She is a recipient of Prime Minister s award for Excellence in Administration and has worked with the Government of Karnataka in various capacities including positions of Director, Women and Child Development Department, Deputy Commissioner, Belgaum. UITP - PTI 3/