The rapid and often unplanned and uncoordinated growth of cities has seriously compromised existing transportation systems and significantly increased the challenge of creating new transportation systems, especially in developing countries. It is indeed in developing countries that the greatest growth in motor vehicles has been seen in the past few years and is expected in the future, primarily in urban areas. The environmental and social impacts are significant and directly related to quality of life and urban productivity. These impacts include congestion, energy consumption, air pollution, and traffic crashes. Thus, urban transportation issues are of foremost importance to support the mobility requirements in these growing cities and require new approaches. 

However, urban transport is a political rather than a technical issue. The technical aspects are relatively simple. The difficult decisions relate to the type of city we want and the way we want to live. Who is going to benefit from the models adopted? Do we dare to create a transport model different from that of the so-called advanced world cities? Do we dare create a transport system giving priority to the needs of the poor majority rather than the automobile owning minority? Are we trying to find the most efficient, economical way to move a city’s population, as cleanly and as comfortable as possible? Or are we just trying to minimize the upper class’s traffic jams? These questions are posed by Enrique Peñalosa, the former mayor of Bogotá (Columbia), who introduced a number of sustainable measures in his city.

This online course, based on the material jointly developed by GIZ and UNITAR, is designed to provide answers to the abovementioned questions, as well as solutions and alternative approaches in the area of urban transport planning that target a more sustainable transport system in Developing Cities.