URBAN TRANSPORTATION ISSUES IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD

The basic premise of this paper is that there are significant differences in the urban transportation issues faced in developing countries as opposed to those encountered in advanced economies. Urban transportation issues in the lesser developed nations range from the establishment of investment priorities to the development of appropriate organizational, institutional, and regulatory mechanisms that can deal effectively with the myriad of government agencies, private sector organizations, and international lending agencies that often influence development of the urban transport sector. The paper deals with a number of issues related specifically to: the need to combine short term implementation with planning under conditions of spectacular rates or urbanization; deficiencies in fiscal and human resources; the influence of national priorities and foreign exchange limitations; the lack of data and appropriate methodologies for planning; choice of technology and possible distortions that result from external financing of projects; the need to develop organizational structures for co-ordination of planning, implementation, and operation; and, special problems associated with a relatively high degree of dependence on foreign financing, technical expertise, and technology. (TRRL)