Untitled - Civic Exchange

ASUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT POLICY
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"The term sustainable development was introduced in 1980, popularized in the 1987 report of
the World Commission on Environment and Development (the Brundtland Commission), and
given the status of a global mission by the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992." 6
The concept of sustainable development has now been widely adopted as a legitimate planning goal. In
essence, sustainable development focuses on improving (and maintaining) the quality of life for all
inhabitants of the Earth without increasing the use of natural resources beyond the capacity of the natural
environment to supply them indefinitely. This concept takes into account the fact that innovative ways need
to be found to change institutional structures and influence individual behavior. The practice of sustainable
development requires taking action and changing policy and practice at all levels - at the individual and
national, as well as the international, level. 7
Although sustainable development initially emphasized resource conservation, 8 the concept has gradually
evolved to encompass a broader range of issues, including transport. 9 Transport is key to prosperity as well
as to sustainability and has attracted special attention in recent years. This chapter provides a brief
overview of the international debate on sustainable transport and summarizes the essential elements of
what constitutes a sustainable transport policy.
1.1 A sustainable transport policy
Transport is central to economic growth and social development. On the one hand, it facilitates the
movement of raw materials and freight at the international, national, regional, and local levels. On the other
hand, it facilitates the movement of people and the diffusion of ideas and knowledge. As transport is a prerequisite
for growth, an enormous sum of money has been invested in major transport infrastructure
projects all over the world during the last few decades.
Over roughly the same period, motorized transport has become an integral part of people's daily lives by
providing the means to get to jobs, amenities, and leisure facilities. Public transport services, as well as
personal modes of transport such as private cars and motorcycles, connect people with one another. Indeed,
private vehicles have become the icon of a "modern" lifestyle that emphasizes personal mobility and
individual freedom. In an urban context, prosperity, car ownership, highway construction, and dispersed
land use patterns reinforce one another. Consequently, improved mobility serves and shapes urban sprawl.
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Kageson, cited in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (1997), Towards
Sustainable Transportation, Proceedings of the Vancouver Conference held in March 1996, organized by the OECD
and hosted by the Government of Canada.
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SD Gateway at , section on definitions of sustainable development.
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According to Haq, the term sustainable development was first brought forward by the World Conservation
Strategy (WCS) in 1980, which explained the contribution of resource conservation to human survival and to
sustainable development. Haq, G. (1997), Towards Sustainable Transport Planning: A Comparison between Britain
and the Netherlands, Aldershot: Ashgate, p.6.
9 In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) report, Our Common Future
(commonly known as the Brundtland Report), defined sustainable development as "development that meets the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." The Report
weaves together social, economic, cultural, and environmental issues with global solutions and also highlights the
notion of intra-generational and inter-generational equity. WCED (1987), Our Common Future, Oxford: Oxford
University Press, p.8.
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