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Draft Urban Transport Study being reviewed by stakeholders – Minister Patterson
The Final Report on the Sustainable Urban Transport Study is expected to be completed
Public Infrastructure Minister, David Patterson
within the next four weeks. This is according to Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson.
The Minister during an interview with the media following his party’s recent press conference had said that the draft study has been completed and is now being reviewed and considered by the relevant stakeholders. He said that the completion of this process will allow his Ministry to have a better idea of implementing improved policies to primarily deal with urban transportation within municipalities and townships.
“The draft has been issued already, and we will comment on the draft and the stakeholders will comment on the draft.”
Inclusive in the study is the consideration of whether parking meters are a good choice to regulate transportation, specifically parking within the capital city. Patterson made it clear that his party, the Alliance for Change (AFC), does not support the parking meter contract in its current form.
He said, however, that this position may be distinct from the position of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure due to the Sustainable Urban Transport Study.
Patterson reminded that the draft study was done by a European firm. The study was funded by a loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under the Road Network Upgrade and Expansion Programme.
A further update was provided by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure through its most recent newsletter. According to the Ministry, the objective of the project is to conduct a comprehensive urban study aimed at improving mobility in and around Georgetown.
It is expected that the study will provide recommendations and policy options to allocate road space more efficiently among users, and to increase the use of cleaner and more sustainable modes of transportation.
The publication said that the study will develop a specific diagnostic of the urban transport situation, problems and trends, and provide recommendations on matters of public transport infrastructure, operations, financing and institutional organisation.
Moreover, it was noted that the Central Transport and Planning Unit (CPTU) of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure had held a focus group forum on women and their use of public transportation.
The study that is to be finalised will be influenced by the information that was recorded during this forum, among others. However, that particular consultation was important, since the IDB had noted that 50 per cent of public transport users in the Caribbean and Latin America are women.
According to the newsletter, some of the results from that engagement indicate that women face additional problems in public transportation such as sexual harassment, abusive language and disrespectful music being played.
Further, it was noted that the main problem of the public transport system that affects both men and women is the lack of regulation of minibus operations. Another point that was raised is the lack of designated space for pedestrian and cyclists and the absence of street lighting. These were described as major barriers for non-motorised transport in the city area.
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