Water, Engineering and Development Centre

Partnerships to Improve Access and Quality of Transport for the Urban Poor

WEDC staff involved

• Professor M. Sohail (Khan) – Project Manager

Description

The purpose of this project was to identify, explore and document critical issues in the provision of transport services for, and in, low-income settlements, with a view to developing a methodology which addressed policy and operational issues.

Project partners:

• Urban Resources Centre, Karachi
• International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
• Transport Research Laboratories (TRL), UK

The assumption of this research project was that transport services make a significant contribution to the livelihood strategies of the urban poor. This contribution (both positive and negative) included access to employment and income generation opportunities, education, health, and social networks (such as extended families) which can help in securing income and necessary goods and services.

Many bilateral and multilateral agencies are strongly advocating partnerships as a means of providing transport services. It is crucial for public transport to be successful and sustainable and that the poor are not neglected during transport planning. There are many attitudinal, procedural, regulatory and political barriers that need to be overcome in order to implement pro-poor transport strategies.

Focus of the project:
The key question addressed was how to improve the access to and quality of public transport for the urban poor. The work focused on formal and informal relationships (contracts), and roles and responsibilities in the context of the projects which have provided transport services to the poor.

The research methodology included case studies using interviews and a series of focus group discussions at settlement and city level. The project contributed to an understanding of some of the issues of vulnerability of the roles of key public and private organizations. The project also addressed the key issue of the contribution of partnerships in public transport to sustainable livelihoods for the urban poor.

The research developed and tested the methodology by using literature review, historical analysis, case studies, focus group discussions, forums and workshops. The work was extended to other cities worldwide in the second phase of the project.

The outputs were:

• country papers, published in local languages;
• a summary of the findings of the work;
• electronic conference on the findings of the work;
• a summary for publication in the local popular press and direct dissemination to community organizations; and
• a journal article.

Outputs were published in the UK and South Asia with primary dissemination via local partner networks. We managed an email conference on the project outputs which is also available on the WEDC website. Subsequent secondary dissemination included translation by local publishers. Workshops at settlement and city level were held, and international media attention sought through such organizations as the Panos Institute and the BBC World Service.

Project outputs:

• Partnerships to improve access and quality of public transport: Colombo, Sri Lanka
• Partnerships to improve access and quality of public transport: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
• Partnerships to improve access and quality of public transport: Faisalabad, Pakistan
• Partnerships to improve access and quality of public transport: Guidelines
• Inception report – amended October 2001

 
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Outputs

Client:
Department for International Development (DFID)

Countries:
South Asia: Colombo, Sri Lanka, Karachi, Pakistan, Faisalabad, Pakistan; East Africa: Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania

Start date:
October 2001

End date:
March 2003