1. Curitiba
Curitiba is well known for its innovative public transport system based on buses that is one of the many initiatives adopted to improve the quality of life in the city. There has been a rapid economic and demographic growth in the last few decades which has transformed the city into an important industrial and commercial center and a center for transporting and processing agricultural goods. It is one of the fastest growing cities of Brazil.
Curitiba’s public transport system has developed over the span of 20 years. During the peak of Brazil’s rapid urbanization in 1960s, a decision to concentrate on planning framework was taken in Curitiba which emphasized on the integration of all the elements within the urban system …show more content…
The master plan of 1960s had set broad goals. Implementation of these goals took place in small steps, sometimes on trial and error basis and in concern with the private and public interests. Ten private firms provide the buses, drivers, maintenance and capital. Through a city owned corporation, city provides route planning, roads, terminals scheduling, etc. The overall system is a partnership of public private interests. Curitiba’s successive improvements in transportation reduced travel times and increased convenience.
Curitiba’s BRT system is a model for making the city livable. The bus runs frequently and the stations are convenient, well-designed and are user friendly. Curitiba has one of the most heavily used transit system, yet it is low cost. Studies prove that about 70% of the commuters in the city use the BRT to travel to work thus resulting in congestion free streets and reducing the pollution and noise levels. Best part being that the citizens spend only 10 percent of their income in …show more content…
To ensure a sustainable economic and urban growth, the Singapore authority has taken few processes in terms of its policies. One of it being the control of car population and its usage. It was key component of the master plan implemented in 1971 and is still under practice. Control on private ownership of a vehicle has been achieved by two measures taken by the government i.e. car ownership restraints and car usage restrictions. The two forms of car ownership restraints are monetary measures to increase the cost of owning a private vehicle and second being the Vehicle Quota System (VQS). The cost of not only buying but operating and maintaining is increased by inculcating import duties, fuel and road taxes, vehicle registration fees and above all compulsory vehicle inspection fees. All these costs sum up to huge amounts thus making it a luxury for the users, hence declining its usage. Further the individual intending to buy a car needs to have a Certificate of Entitlement (CoE) through an open bidding process, which is a part of VQS. Tenders for CoEs are held monthly. Each CoE allows a vehicle to register for a span of 10 years only. This strongly allows government to have a complete control on the growth rate of the vehicle population. Furthermore the Area Licensing Scheme (ALS) and the Electronic Road