Collective passenger transport – the best solution for controlling CO2 emissions, ITF study shows

In its paper “Low-Carbon Mobility for Mega cities – What Different Policies Mean for Urban Transport Emissions in China and India”, the International Transport Forum (ITF) presents three different types of policy scenarios and their expected impact on reducing CO₂emissions in ten cities of two of the most polluted countries in the world: India and China.

The scenario “Integrated Land Use and Transport Planning”, assuming a broad use of collective passenger transport, shows the greatest positive environmental impact. It involves a wide availability of Bus Rapid Transit services, coupled with shortening bus and rail travel times. A significant decrease in the use of private vehicles is also one of the main expected results. From the three cases examined by ITF, it is under this scenario that Indian cities would experience the lowest growth of CO₂emissions.

Importantly, according to ITF, subsidies would not really encourage higher bus ridership as public transport in the Indian and Chinese cities is already cheap. What would really make public transport more attractive would be the quality of the service and a better overall user experience.

Let us recall that the IRU is coordinating the on-going work of the All India Smart Move High Level Group, which is expected to deliver, by the end of the year, its recommendations aimed at increasing the collective passenger transport in India.

Learn more:

Low-Carbon Mobility for Mega cities – What Different Policies Mean for Urban Transport Emissions in China and India

Significant progress on Indian smart urban mobility