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2. ASIAN ECONOMIC WOES IMPACTING TRANSPORT

There are numerous transport-related implications of the economic problems in eastern Asia at the moment. For example, the Economist Intelligence Unit says car sales in Asia will fall 29 percent this year (70% in Indonesia, 60% in South Korea, a further 37% in Thailand, and 33% in Malaysia). Many large road projects are on hold. Perhaps the delays may allow time for some destructive projects to be reassessed. One or two mass transit projects have also been postponed or have lost financing. Public transport companies are delaying bus purchases.
A more politically explosive issue is that fuel prices (in local currency terms) are rising. Pressure to allow a rise must be building up even in those countries that control fuel prices. The IMF has required Indonesia to phase out most of its generous fuel subsidy system. Fuel price rises or fears of price rises are already beginning to spark intense debate and strikes by public transport operators (eg. in the Philippines). Advocates of sustainable and people-centred transport in the region need to be ready with clear and reasoned responses to this and other issues raised by the crisis.
We would like to explore more of the implications of the crisis for sustainable and people-centred transport policy in detail in coming months. Comments from readers are invited. There is also some discussion of this issue on the sustran-discuss list. Please contact the SUSTRAN Secretariat if you need instructions on how to subscribe to sustran-discuss.

3. GREEN TRANSPORT ADVOCATES MEET WITH GEF

On January 15th a number of sustainable transport advocates, under the banner of the UN NGO transport caucus, held a meeting with Global Environment Fund (GEF) staff to comment on the GEF paper "Draft Operational Program No. 11: Promoting Sustainable Transport Infrastructure." The final document should be ready by November. The GEF is administered by the World Bank and focuses on projects in developing countries that aim to reduce climate change.
Participants in the meeting included Mr. Ken King, Deputy CEO of the GEF Secretariat, Mr. Dilip Ahuja, GEF Energy specialist and author of the draft OP, and a number of other GEF staff members. The sustainable transport advocates included representatives of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), the TRB International Committee on Non-Motorised Transport and Related Issues in Developing Countries, the International Institute for Energy Conservation and the Environmental Defense Fund. A number of other groups had earlier signed a letter to the GEF on the issue but were unable to attend.
The advocates expressed concern about the draft Operational Program (OP). The key point was that the draft eligibility criteria are too narrow and too focused on high technology solutions. They explicitly exclude support for many tested measures such as bicycle lanes and bus lanes, support for the dissemination of already commercially available public transit vehicles, and make no mention of non-motorised technologies. It was felt that the current focus on high-technology alternative-fuel vehicles was not the right balance for developing countries.
The advocates stressed the need for an ongoing process for dialogue between GEF staff and sustainable transport advocates while the OP is prepared during 1998. The UN Transport Caucus was suggested as coordinating body for such input. The advocates are now awaiting a formal response from the GEF and are also preparing their own response to the issues raised in the meeting.
[Contact: Walter Hook, ITDP, 115 W, 30th St, Suite 1205, New York, NY 10001, USA. Tel. +1 212 629 8001, Fax. +1 212 629 8033, E-mail: mobility@igc.apc.org].

4. GENDER ISSUES IN RURAL TRANSPORT

An Asian regional workshop on 'Gender Issues in Rural Transport' was held in Calcutta on the 11-12 of November , 1997. It was organised by the International Forum for Rural Transport and Development (IFRTD) in collaboration with the Centre for Built Environment, Calcutta.
[For further information, contact Ms. Priyanthi Fernando, IFRTD, 150 Southampton Row, 2nd Floor, London WCIB5AL, United Kingdom. Fax: +44 171 278 6880, E-mail: ifrtd@gn.apc.org].

5. PROJECT ON YOUTH ROAD SAFETY IN LAOS: FEEDBACK WANTED

Save the Children Australia in the Lao PDR is initiating a one year pilot project to improve road safety among youth in Vientiane. Despite a ratio of just 1 vehicle for every 26 people, the Lao PDR presently has the highest rate of road accident fatalities per capita of any ASEAN country except Vietnam. Solutions will ultimately involve improvements in both the driving environment and traffic law enforcement. But SCA believes a significant reduction in road accident fatalities can be made by simply increasing knowledge of safe, courteous, legal driving practices among young people. The legal age for driving a motorised vehicle is 18, yet people who are obviously younger--sometimes significantly younger--can be seen driving motorcycles in Vientiane every day. SCA's pilot project will begin by conducting research to determine what these urban youth already know and think about road safety. This data will then serve as a basis for designing educational materials including a safety pamphlet and video, and a road safety curriculum for the schools. The project also includes funds to assist the government in setting up a computerised database on road accidents, and to stage one or more public road safety events. SCA welcomes ideas and suggestions from workers and programs that are trying to reduce road accidents in their countries.
[Source and Contact: Dr. Anna Gillespie, Save the Children Australia, PO Box 2783, Vientiane, Lao PDR; Tel. (856-21) 31 3837; Fax (856-21) 41 5432; E-mail: scauslao@loxinfo.co.th].

6. EXXON HYPOCRISY ON GLOBAL WARMING

US energy and other corporations conducted a public campaign in the US against the global warming treaty prior to the Kyoto conference, arguing against developing countries being let off the hook. Exxon was prominent among the corporations opposing US commitments to reduce emissions unless developing countries also made commitments. However, the Wall St. Journal reported in October that Exxon, the world's biggest oil company, had also urged developing countries to reject the global warming treaty, because environmental controls would hinder their development. Speaking at the 15th World Petroleum Congress in Beijing, Exxon chairman Lee Raymond urged developing countries to use more, not less fossil fuels, and said nature was to blame for most global warming. Both corporate and environmental lobbying efforts on the issue now centre on US Senate ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, which requires the US to reduce greenhouse emissions 7% below 1990 levels early in the next century.
[Source: Mobilizing the Region #154, Tri-State Transportation Campaign: 281 Park Ave. South, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10010; tel. (212) 777-8181; fax (212) 777-8157; E-mail: tstc@tstc.org; URL: http://www.tstc.org/].

7. TRAFFIC "EVAPORATION" STUDY

The latest edition of New Scientist magazine highlights a forthcoming study into the effects of road closures on traffic. The study by researchers led by Phil Goodwin of University College London is due out next month but is already causing a stir. The draft report suggests that on average 20 per cent of the traffic that used a road seems to "evaporate" after the road has been closed. The study was commissioned by London Transport and the UK Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. The team analysed 60 cases worldwide where roads had been closed (or their ability to carry traffic significantly reduced). In some cases up to 60 per cent of the traffic vanishes. The examples studied by Goodwin's team were mostly in urban areas. In many cases, congestion on neighbouring routes was feared but never occurred. But where did the traffic go? The report suggests that individuals often have considerable flexibility in their transport choices (such as the mode of travel, when to travel, and even whether to travel at all). This flexibility allows people to cope with road closures. These results imply that there could be much greater scope for traffic restraint than has previously been assumed.
[Source: "Roadblocks ahead" by Mick Hamer, New Scientist, 24 January 1998. URL: http://www.newscientist.com/ ns/980124/news.html ].

8. HUMANE DRIVING

A driving School with a difference was opened in Berlin. "Verkehr Human" teaches drivers to use their vehicles in a way that saves on fuel, produces fewer harmful emissions, and respects other road users. It is run by Lothar Taubert, a driving instructor who has researched environmentally sound driving methods at the Technical University in Berlin. He also encourages drivers to say hello to cyclists when stopped at red lights "because the cyclist may need a bit of cheering up!"
[Source: T&E Bulletin, T&E Secretariat, BD de Waterloo, 34, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium. Tel: +32 2 502 9909; Fax: +32 2 502 9908; E-mail: tande@knooppunt.be; Verkehr human Fax: +49 30 6981 0011].

9. RESOURCES

a. NMT News NMT News is a newsletter published twice yearly by the Transportation Research Board Committee on Non-motorised Transport and Related Issues in Developing Countries. The most recent edition of this newsletter (Vol. 4, No. 2, Fall/Winter 1997) included (among others) articles on NMT in Peru; on the Bicycle Boom in Germany; and on the improvement of cycle carts for recyclable waste collection in Santiago de Chile.
[Contacts: For SUBMISSIONS - Chair of the Editorial Committee, Dharm Guruswamy, Apogee Research Inc., 4350 East-West Highway, Suite 600, Bethesda, MD, USA 20814; E-mail: guruswam@apogee-us.com; For SUBSCRIPTIONS - Maggie Cusack, NY State Department of Transportation, Albany, New York, USA 12232. Tel. +1 518 457 8361, Fax. +1 518 457 7535, E-mail: mcusack@gw.dot.state.ny.us].

b. Integrated Transport Planning: Beginner's Handbook for Policy Makers, Technicians & Citizens by the International Institute for Energy Conservation, Transport Program, January 1996.
[Contact: IIEC-Asia, 8 Sukhumvit Soi 49/9, Bangkok 10110 Thailand. Tel. +66 2 381 0814, Fax. +66 2 381 0815, E-mail: tum@loxinfo.co.th; OR IIEC-US, 750 First Street, NE, Suite 940, Washington DC, 20002, USA, Tel. +1 202 842 3388, Fax. +1 202 842 1565, E-mail: iiec@iiec.org; URL: http://www.crest.org/clients/iiec].

c. Lessons & Practices, No. 11 (Nov. 1997): Urban Transport Published by the Operations and Evaluation Department of the World Bank, this edition of Lessons & Practices evaluates the World Bank's experiences with lending in Urban Transport during the last 20 years.
[Contact: OED, Tel. +1 202 458 4497, Fax. +1 202 522 3200, E-mail: eline@worldbank.org].

d. Heritage Habitat - A Source Book of the Urban Conservation Movement in Asia and the Pacific Compiled by Khoo Salma Nasution, illustrated by Shibu Dutta, published by the Asia & West Pacific Network for Urban Conservation (AWPNUC), November 1997. It includes an invaluable directory of information resources and contacts.
[Contact: AWPNUC Secretariat, 19 Kelawai Road, 10250 Penang, Malaysia, Tel/fax. +60 4 226 1358, E-mail: lubisksn@tm.net.my].

e. Alternative Transport Policy in Poland Discussion paper published in 1997 by the Institute for Sustainable Development, ul. Kowicka 31, 02-502 Warszawa, Poland. Fax. +48 22 646 0174.

f. Transport Blueprint: National Study for Romania 1996, By the environmental organisation, Ecosens.
[Contact: Ecosens, Str. Paul Greceanu 9, Bl. 20A, Ap.38, Sector 2, 72119 Bucharest, Romania. E-mail: office@ecosens.sbnet.ro].

g. Sustainable Transport magazine The magazine of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP). The latest edition (No. 8, Winter 1998) includes articles on Budapest, Prague, Managua, South Africa, Tehran, Jakarta and an update on the Trans-Israel highway controversy. ITDP "is a non-profit research, dissemination and project-implementation agency which seeks to promote the use of non-motorised vehicles and the broader implementation of sustainable transportation policies worldwide."
[Contact: ITDP, 115 W, 30th St, Suite 1205, New York, NY 10001, USA. Tel. +1 212 629 8001, Fax. +1 212 629 8033, E-mail: mobility@igc.apc.org].

h. Transport for the Poor or Poor Transport? A General Review of Rural Transport Policy in Developing Countries with Emphasis on Low-income Areas, by John Howe.
[Contact: International Labour Organisation publications, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland].

i. A Guide to Better Practice: Reducing the Need to Travel Through Land Use and Transport Planning. Department of Transport and Environment, UK. L23.50.
[Contact: HMSO Publications Centre, PO Box 276, London, SW8 5DT. Tel. +44 171 873 9090, Fax: +44 171 873 8200].

j. US EPA Smart Travel Resource Center (Online) The Smart Travel Resource Center (STRC) is a directory of transportation/air quality public education program summaries from around the US. Interested parties will be able to use the STRC to gather communication and outreach information and materials on transportation/air quality programs of interest to them.
[The URL is: http://www.epa.gov/omswww/strc.htm. Or contact Patrice Thornton Tel +1 734 668-4329; e-mail: oms-sti-group@epamail.epa.gov].

k. Canberra at the Crossroads This new paper by the Sustainable Transport Working Group (STWG) of the Conservation Council of the South-East Region and the ACT, suggests alternatives to expensive freeway projects and car-dominance.
[Contact: URL: http://www.pcug.org.au/~parkerp/stwg.htm; Peter Parker, E-mail: parkerp@pcug.org.au].

l. Anti-freeway cartoon detective goes online The anti-freeway adventure comics, 'Roads of Doom' and 'Ship of State', featuring Nick B Possum, marsupial private eye, are now on the world wide web.
[The URL is: http://www.brushtail.com.au/nick.possum].

m. Canadian perspective The Winter 1998 issue of Alternatives Journal, a Canadian environmental journal, focuses on transport issues. Feature articles include: an international comparative perspective by Tamim Raad and Jeff Kenworthy; John Pucher on public transport in Canada; Todd Litman on what cars are really costing society, and how proper pricing can help.
[Contact: Alternatives Journal, Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1. phone: + 1 519 888-4567 ext. 6783; fax: (519) 746-0292; E-mail: alternat@fes.uwaterloo.ca; URL: http://www.fes.uwaterloo.ca/alternatives].

10. EVENTS

TORG International Symposium on Travel Demand Management. University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, 8-10 July, 1998. Key Note Speaker is Professor Phil Goodwin, University College London. [Contact: Mrs. Lynda Morgan, Transport Operations Research Group, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK, Tel: + 44 191 222 7683; Fax: + 44 191 222 8352; E-mail: lynda.morgan@newcastle.ac.uk; URL: http://www.ncl.ac.uk/~nws1].

11. THE LIGHTER SIDE

The Japanese weekly "Shukan Bunshun" asked its readers if they knew of anyone who used unusual means to commute. Here are some of the responses:

" There was a man in the company I used to work at whose commute resembled a triathlon. He bicycled from his house to the port, took a boat from there to another port, changed to a streetcar there and then to a bus and then walked 15 minutes to the office."

" Mr. Takagi, who has bought an apartment house located in front of the office, brags that his commuting time is zero minutes. And yet, he often reports late. We female employees have one request of him: to stop waving at his wife at lunch break!"

" My husband rides his mountain bike to work every day. According to him, once he caught and passed a guy on a motorcycle, who later caught up to him at a light stop and told him that he had been doing 45kph."
[Source: The Japanese Times, 23 November 1997.]