Urban transport - Kolkata

Sustainability and urban transport-Kolkata

A presentation by
Surajit Bhattacharya
Architect and Urban Planner

Social Dilemmas

Presentation will cover the following
Definition of sustainability and sustainable development
Definition of sustainable urban transport
Global warming and climate change
Types of Institution and Formal Institution
Existing UrbanTransport in Kolkata
Over view of National UrbanTransport Policy
Dilemma of Policy Implementation and Bounded Rationality
Way forward with carrot and stick approach (soft and hard measures)

Sustainability
What is sustainability ?

Definition of Sustainability and Sustainable Development
According to Beatley, 1995 “universally there is no accepted
definition of sustainability, sustainable development or
sustainable transport”
Sustainable development “meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.” (Brundtland Commission, 1987)

“Sustainable development is the achievement of continued
economic development without detriment to the environmental
and natural resources.” (Themes Sustainable Development,
2004).
Sustainability is “the capacity for continuance into the long
term future”. Anything that can go on being done on an
indefinite basis is sustainable. Anything that cannot go on
being done indefinitely is unsustainable (Centre for
Sustainability, 2004)
1. Definition of Sustainability and Sustainable Development

“The goal of sustainable transportation is to ensure that the environment,
social and economic considerations are factored into decisions affecting
transportation activity.” (MOST, 1999)
Transportation impacts on sustainability- Litman and Burwell, (2006, p.335)
Definition of Sustainable urban transport

What is carbon footprint actually ?
Definition of Carbon foot print

Definition of Carbon foot print
CFP is a measure of all
greenhouse gases a
specified entity and is a
measure of how much we
affect the environment,
and particularly climate
change, through our lifestyle.
It consider the effect of using
a car, flying, but also eating
habits and leisure.
You May visit http://www.carbonfootprint.com/ to calculate your CFP
Source: http://alternativestandrews.blogspot.in/

What are GHGs?
Definition of Greenhouse Effect

Definition of Greenhouse Effect
Greenhouse Gases such
as:
 Water vapour (H2O)
 Carbon dioxide(CO2)
 Methane (CH4)
 Nitrous oxide (N2O)
are all absorbers of
infrared radiation and
known as GHGs

What are Global warming
and climate change?

 Visible light is reflected as infrared radiation and is absorbed
by these gases and then slowly release the heat back into the
atmosphere keeping Earth’s average surface temperature
around 59°F (15°C).
 Without this atmospheric greenhouse effect, the average
surface temperature of the planet would be only about 0°F
(-18°C).Many life forms would find it difficult to survive.
 Problems happen when the greenhouse effect becomes too
great and the temperature continues to rise.

Definition of Sustainable urban transport
What are sustainable and
unsustainable transport?

Sustainable transportation indicators (Economic)

Sustainable transportation indicators (Social)

Sustainable transportation indicators (Environmental)
VOC:Volatile org comp

According to Prof. David Banister (Oxford University), 2003 –
“In an absolute sense all transport is unsustainable as it consumes resources.
Walking and cycling come nearest to being sustainable, as they consume very
little non-renewable energy, but even here other types of resources are used,
principally space”.
“ As we move down the transport hierarchy, more resources are used both in
terms of energy consumption, and in the production of externalities”.
Externalities in the transport context cover the emissions of pollutions, the waste
from the production and disposal of vehicles, the use of public spaces for roads
and parking, the severance effect, destruction of ecosystem and visual
annoyance.
Sustainable urban transport

Sustainable urban transport
Is Private Car unsustainable?

According to Prof. David Banister
(Oxford University), 2003 –
“In terms of sustainable transport,
both walking and cycling come out
top. High occupancy public transport
(including rail, bus, tram and metro)
follows, but in some cases only just
ahead of CLEAN, SMALL, EFFICIENT
car. The third group includes high
speed rail and many other types of
car. Taxis and lorries form a fourth
group with air transport on its own in
a fifth group”.
Sustainable urban transport (In terms of Resources Used)

Sustainable urban transport (In terms of Resources Used)
According to Wegener and Fürst, 1999 - The car as a mode of
transport has been mostly accepted as the standard to indicate
unsustainability of urban transport system.

Sustainable urban transport (In terms of energy)
Banister, D2003 (Oxford University)

Definition of Formal Institutions
Williamson,O.E,1994 identifies four levels of institutions in the framework of
new institutional economics and they are informal, formal, governance
and resource allocation / employment related.
According to Williamson, 1994 Formal Institutions are normally established
and constituted by binding laws, regulations and legal orders which prescribe
what may or may not be done.
The formal institutions are codified statutes, constitutional provisions, laws,
regulations and high administrative orders.
Sudden and radical institutional change does occur, but generally, formal
institutions change slowly through the politics of modification and reform as
different interests and ideas compete to get the most out of the rules.

Trip distributions (Source: IDFC, 2008)
“Urban transport in Calcutta is in crisis. Because of uncontrolled land use development, associated transport
activity and an unrelenting increase in private motor vehicles, there is severe congestion and deteriorating public
transport.” (Halder, 1997, p. 24)

0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Kolkata Delhi Mumbai
Percentage Modal Share 2002
Walk
Non Motorised Veicle
Private Motorised
Public Transport
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Kolkata Delhi Mumbai
Percentage Modal Share 2008
Walk
Non Motorised Veicle
Private Motorised
Public Transport

Growth in Motorised vehicles, Kolkata (Source: Statistical Handbook,WBG)

Source: Pucher et al, 2005 for 2002 data and Wilbur Smith Report for 2008 data

Tram Services in Kolkata
Statistical hand book, 2002-03,WSG

National UrbanTransport Policy 2006
http://urbanindia.nic.in/policies/TransportPolicy.pdf

National UrbanTransport Policy 2006 (Main Focus)

NUTP (2006) implementation at state level
http://kolkatatrafficpolice.gov.in/bi_cycle_notice.htm
http://www.urbanindia.nic.in/programme/ut/K_1401
1152007_UT.pdf

http://www.jnnurmwestbengal.gov.in/Others/uig_mpr_31122012.pdf

JnNURM Spending (Source: KMDA)

Decision making and implementation gap
According to David Banister: “the problem is what is sometimes known as
implementation gap between how we get good ideas…….and the
practicalities of decision making in the real world is constrained by institutional,
organisational and financial and other issues, so there is an implementation
gap between what should be done and what can be done and looking at the
ways in which that can actually be bridged.” (New Statesman Magazine,
2012).
European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT, 2002)
however, concluded that, while cities were generally aware of the
most appropriate solutions, the implementation of such sustainable
transport strategies was “more easily said than done”.

POLICY
FRAMING
IMPLEMENTATION
MECHANISM
APPRAISAL FUNDING
EXECUTION
MONITORINGEVALUATION

I investigated barriers with respect to
cognitive limitations of individual stakeholders
to sustainable urban transport policy vis-à-vis
implementation gap leading to “urban
transport crisis in Kolkata”

“implementation should not be divorced from policy. There is no
point in having good ideas if they cannot be carried out”.
(Pressman and Wildavsky, 1973, P 143)
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oV0yetu_GSQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=imp
lementation+pressman&hl=en&sa=X&ei=I8daUequCY3krAf2u4DgDg&ved=0CC4
Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
If you may like to read this book

Bounded Rationality by Herbert Simon
Herbert Alexander Simon (June 15, 1916 – February 9, 2001) the
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics "for his pioneering research into the
decision-making process”.
This theory is drawn from the behavioural economics and psychology.
Simon’s research found that humans are not rational (not irrationality)
opposing to the age old belief as in rational choice theory.
 It is also concerned with rational choice
Takes into account the COGNITIVE LIMITATIONS of the decision maker
 It is concerned with human decision-making processes

KINDLY SAYTHE COLOUR AND NOT SPELLING

The Key insight that Behavioral Economics borrows from
Psychology
Normally the human mind works remarkably
well. Examples:
-Recognize people we haven’t seen in years
-Run down a flight of stairs
- Speak 12 languages
But people can be systematically wrong.
We are prone to biased judgment

CONTEXT

Bounded Rationality
“COGNITION” is the psychological result of perception and learning and
reasoning that is Cognitive psychology deals with high mental processes.
So Bounded rationality is the idea that in decision-making,
 rationality of individuals is limited by the information they have
 the cognitive limitations of their minds
and the finite amount of time they have to make a decision
Simon also used a Scottish word “satisficing” which deals with the
action process not necessarily optimum but good enough and near
to satisfaction considering the limitations of finite information, cognitive
ability, time and level of aspiration to search for alternative for optimum
solution

Optimizing versus Satisficing
Optimizing strategies
search here
Satisficing strategies
search here

Optimizing versus Satisficing
structure of the
environment
(exogenous &
endogenous)
cognitive limits
Simple Heuristic: fix
the angle of your gazeHeuristic: rule of thumb

Some quotes from the interviews with the policy makers
“principal point of the urban transport policy is that move people not vehicles and I think that this
policy as has been formulated fulfils the social and economic needs of the people and the overall
fame work for the sustainable mission for sustainable urban development”.
“The present trend is to go towards non car based transport, that is public transport, cycling and
walking but the progress has been rather slow. Our ministry has been trying to promote non car
based transport like public transport, cycling and walking but the response of the states to the
same has been rather slow”
“The priority is obviously on non car based transport policies that is use of public transport
over private transport. But so far in implementation, very often private transport has got
priority. Most of the flyovers that have been made are benefitting mainly car owners, this is
not desirable.”
“....prescriptions of NUTP of 2006 in the strictest sense there is yet to be a proper reflection
in urban transport policy at the level of Kolkata. Even at the level of KMA also we do not
have a policy as such.What we have is a set of plans which are mandated .JnNURM.”

Some quotes from the interviews with the policy makers
“......NUTP has incorporated the principle that pedestrians and pedestrian infrastructure need
special focus ...... but the guidelines of the JnNURM do not make explicit reference to pedestrian
and bicycle infrastructure.This is one of the weakest links.”
“...Calcutta we can now see crisscrossing of metro railway lines being built up. Calcutta was the
first city in India where the underground metro first built.
“ Around Kolkata, the new townships and the satellite towns are being planned without paying
much attention to transportation needs.We are putting the cart before the horse”
“Cycling I do not think is a very viable option in Calcutta; temperature, humidity and the rain and the
plight of the senior citizens make it quite difficult for people to use cycles……when all these public
network will grow they will carry millions of people around and I can very well see if we can plan it
properly will park their cars near metro stations and go long distances there and take some kind of a
shuttle for the nearest mile connectivity”
We have a very ambivalent attitude towards the tram way system, there are a lot of diverse
opinions but I think the present tram way system as it exists is not suitable for Calcutta. There are
so many ways of reviving the heritage aspect I don’t mind that.. I mean in the Maidan area if there
is a heritage and the tourist go and have a taste of what it was like the toy train in Darjeeling

Some examples of unsustainable projects
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Client.asp?skin=pastissues2&enter=LowLevel&AW=1367324144938

Some examples of unsustainable projects
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Client.asp?skin=pastissues2&enter=LowLevel&AW=13
67324144938

Way forward
Source:Asian Development Bank

Old (pre-1947) nostalgic
photos of Kolkata

Urban transport - Kolkata

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