Public participation in building a sustainable transport system

Mobility is a basic human activity as it serves us to reach other activities such as work, leisure and household management. In the last years, due to globalisation, the need of efficient transportation has raised, leading to more individual private transportation that not only has a higher impact on the environment but also on the interaction between people and the way we relate to others.

In European countries, many efforts are being made in order to have sustainable mobility. But what is understood as a sustainable mobility system? There are many definitions for it but the common views express that a sustainable transport system should be one that allows basic access needs and development of individuals, companies and societies to be met safely and in a consistent way with human and ecosystem health. Also, it should promote equity within and between generations, be affordable, operate efficiently, and limit emissions, waste, and noise.

When designing-or redesigning- a transport system, the different communities and institutions can provide valuable information for the authorities responsible for the plan. There are many ways of involving these actors to the work but in order to have effective participation, six guiding principles should be followed: being inclusive, open, interactive, continuous, begin early in the process, and with effective feedback of participants (A. Gil, 2011).

By doing so, the solutions reached in participatory processes have greater potential to be more respectful with the environment as encourage users to use less private automobiles and shift to public transport. Another positive point of a successful SMP is that it doesn’t promote segregation of social status by type of transport; this means that people from different social backgrounds converge in the same vehicles and thus, it leads to social cohesion of the inhabitants of the area.

Furthermore, empowering these actors to shape themselves the system helps to avoid future conflicts as it creates a sense of ownership. They feel more committed and responsible for the consequences of the process, thereby guaranteeing a better implementation.

Source: Artur Gil, Helena Calado, Julia Bentz. Public participation in municipal transport planning processes – the case of the sustainable mobility plan of Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal. Elsevier, 2011