Kochi Transport System to be Revamped: Marion Hoyez

KOCHI:
“Now is the time to redevelop the public transport system of Kochi,” said Marion Hoyez, Urban Transport expert and Cooperation Project Manager, Codatu.
Comparing Kochi to developed cities in Europe, Australia and Canada, whose share of public transport is 80%, and where it is difficult to revive the public transport system, Kochi is at the tipping point and at the cusp of change with its population slowly moving to private vehicles. The income and standard of living are increasing and people are provided with other convenient modes of transport.
The city has to take steps to retain people’s interest in public transport by making it accessible and convenient. Hoyez was speaking on ‘Advantages of Popularising Public Transport in Developing Economies’ at an event organised by Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR) here on Thursday.
The formation of automobile cities poses challenges to public transport. The concept of time has changed in cities with urban sprawl expanding to 50–70 km and cars taking priority over pedestrians. There is a need to put people before cars while planning urban transport and infrastructure. Hoyez cited the example of China, where the use of private vehicles is effectively controlled by implementing the quota system for purchasing private vehicles.
Hoyez supported the widening of roads provided ther
e are dedicated lanes for public transport. There is a need to promote parking policy to discourage the use of private vehicles. She also proposed the creation of a single transport authority like Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority. The talk emphasised the need for having ‘transit oriented development’ to meet the future transport challenges of urban Kochi.