PROMOTING AN ALL-WIN SITUATION

Dhaka's unbearable traffic jam: How to get rid of it? Syed Shamsul Alam

Intolerable traffic congestions every day in Dhaka city have adverse impact on the people's life, economy, colossal wastage of man hours, fuel and so on. Much of it is attributable to the huge increase of cars.
   Car use will increase with the rise of city dweller's incomes unless there is governmental intervention. In the case of densely populated Hong Kong and Singapore, the governments quickly realised that a huge increase in car use in proportion to rising incomes would lead to an impossible situation on the streets, and hence the authorities instituted strict measures for car control, such as mandating that car owners first purchase parking spaces before buying car, or charging very high fees for license. Where governments have not taken such proactive steps or where such steps are taken and then loosened up under pressure of car dealers or manufacturers and others-the traffic problem will invariably aggravate as incomes rise.
   
   Subsidies and FDT
   While we often hear about the subsidies given by the Government for mass transport but hardly ever do we hear about subsidies governments give for cars. Yet such subsidies play an important role in increasing car ownership, and can represent vast sums of money being spent providing free parking, road space, and other infrastructure (such as elevated expressways) for cars, or on fuel subsidies largely used by car owners.
   Meanwhile, with the increase in cars the government moves to increase road space for them-often by limiting or banning manually operated vehicles - that results in the decrease in fuel-free, environment-friendly transport (mostly walking, cycling, and cycle rickshaws), due to danger, lack of road space, and the unpleasantness of trying to use such modes adjacent to noisy and polluting motorised vehicles.
   The "free" market thus fails us by resulting in more fuel-dependent transport (FDT), with serious consequences for the environment and health. (Of course if the market were really "free", there would not be huge subsidies for cars, and car owners would be expected to pay in real terms for the damage they cause, so that a very different picture would likely result.) Damage to the environment of fuel-dependent (motorised) transport includes air and noise pollution, space used for roads and parking that could have been green space (for agriculture, parks, and nature), and contribution to climate change.
   Damage to health includes rising rates of respiratory and other diseases from pollution; injuries and deaths from road crashes; prevalence of obesity due to lack of physical activity caused both by more time spent in cars, and the inability to walk or have a bike ride due to the presence of so many cars; reduced possibility of interacting with neighbours, or of children and youth enjoying outdoor recreation, due to the conversion of open spaces to parking and the hazard from so many fuel-dependent vehicles.
   Other problems caused by fuel-dependent transport include economics, poverty, and insecurity. For example, an average American spends $6,000 per year for car costs, or 20 per cent of gross earnings for the 'privilege' of owning a car. Given that one main reason to own a car is to drive to work-so that one can then pay for one's car-the futility and wastefulness of the current system is obvious. Those whose income is dependent on fuel-free transport are also affected by bans on their livelihood, including rickshaw and van pullers and handcart pushers. Finally, global insecurity is increased due to dependence on foreign oil and the wars that result as countries fight for control over existing oil supplies.
   
   Benefits of FFT
   Shifting from the "free" market focus, with its emphasis on further enriching wealthy corporations, to a focus on transport for development, would lead to significant changes and gains-not only for the poor, but for everyone. Namely, such a focus would emphasise the need for more fuel-free transport (FFT). FFT has many benefits, including the facts that it is inexpensive, does not cause air or noise pollution, generates employment, provides convenient exercise (allowing people to incorporate physical activity into their daily routine, rather than having to make extra time and spend extra money on it) etc.
   In working to achieve change in the transport, health, environment, economics equation, our overall goal is to create people-friendly cities. Given the significant role transport can play in increasing or decreasing quality of life in a city, transport must play a significant role in making cities more liveable.
   The needed changes include an increase in fuel-free transport (walking, cycling, cycle rickshaws), an increase in public transport, decrease in car use (that can be brought about by high parking fees reflecting actual land values, license controls, and car-free areas), and encouragement of high-density, mixed-use areas, which in turn would lead to a reduction in traffic demand.
   Of course bringing about changes in transport is by no means easy. Significant opposition arises from a number of sources for rather obvious reasons -- business, politics, car dealers, manufacturers and road and highway construction companies, media (consider the role of car advertisement in electronic and print media), government and some international agencies.
   Campaigns
   While there is no one set of working methods guaranteed to bring success, a mix of approaches modified for one's own political environment is likely to include at least some of the following: signature campaigns, letter writing (to newspapers and policymakers), meetings with journalists and other ways of giving journalists information, research and publications, meetings and other communication with government officials, seminars, press conferences, and demonstrations.
   Local, regional, and international alliances can also help support the work. Such alliances can include local NGOs working on the issues of environment, rights of the poor, and public health; a regional network with HealthBridge partners; and international support from such networks or groups as the World Carfree Network (WCN) and possibly the Institute for Transportation & Development Policies (ITDP).
   While success is difficult in this area, it is by no means impossible. For instance, successes in Bangladesh included a major slowing of rickshaw bans, and an expressed reversal of World Bank policy in Dhaka regarding those bans.
   In sum, we need to work together to guarantee a major role for fuel-free transport (and to reduce transport needs overall by emphasising proximity over mobility), and to reduce fuel-dependent transport. The result will be a friendlier, people-focused cities-cities in which all inhabitants will gain.

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