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20 CILTWorld issue 9 NEWS FROM MEMBERS Cuba – taking things for granted How one Chartered member of CILT felt he might have to go into ‘James Bond mode’ to observe Havana’s overland metro bus services – which operate with ‘Camels’ ... but without route maps or timetables, and few bus stops! By Mike Taylor, CMILT * IN BRITAIN, we often take some of the simple things for granted. On a recent visit to Cuba I was quickly reminded of this. About a month before my departure from the UK I decided it would be nice, while on holiday to visit a couple of Cuba bus companies in order to have an informal meeting to compare bus-operating problems and to have the opportunity to take some photographs for my archive. Faxes were sent off to three bus companies in Cuba, but after a week I had received no response from any of them. I repeated the exercise a second time, but still no response. A week before my departure to Havana I was disturbed by my secretary in a meeting to say the Cuban Public Relations Attaché In London wanted to speak to me urgently. The gentleman from the Embassy, although polite, was very assertive on the phone line: he had “heard” that I wanted to interview some bus managers. I had “only” a tourist visa and not a journalist visa, and such visits could not be permitted. Suddenly it appeared “big brother” was in a position to stop my holiday to Cuba. It was necessary for me to quickly backtrack, eat humble pie and to forego my harmless idea of sharing bus operational experience with my Cuban peers. Attitudes change and finally the Attaché suggested that upon my arrival in Havana I presented myself to the “English Section” at the International Press office. This I duly did – and was met by a very helpful official. Photographs and forms were completed and exchanged, meetings would be arranged and a ‘minder’ would escort me on my visits. ‘I felt I was moving into covert operations’ However, after completing all these formalities I heard nothing more from the International Press Office about my proposed visits to the bus depots. As I had not been given any official permission to make my visit I felt I was moving into covert operations in my observations of the public road passenger transport in Havana. The city has around two million residents, no metro and a relatively low car population. Personal mobility, therefore, is either by foot or by bus. Political and economic conditions have precluded any substantial investment in the city bus fleet. The municipal fleet appears to consist of Mercedes Benz and Volvo standard buses with Brazilian Buscar bodies painted in a dull blue and white livery. These appear to have been supplemented by a number of Dutch Den Oudsten Dafs, still in their original liveries. Among those interested in transport, Havana has become famous for its substitute overland metro bus services. Known as “Camels” – because of their two humps – these are principally converted articulated lorries (see picture above). These were introduced in 1995 on around ten major corridor routes radiating out from the city centre. The routes have to be planned carefully due to the physical size and manoeuvrability of these huge “truck buses”, which are around 75ft (23 metres) long – compared with 60ft (18 metres) for a typical articulated bus. Each route has a prefix letter “M” followed by a designated numerical number. To add further distinction, each route has a specific allocation of “Camels” and they are painted in very bright pastel colours dedicated to that route. Carrying up to 300 passengers, these vehicles are clearly prime movers as, having observed them during the day, they always appeared to be full. Ultimate secrecy The secrecy in Cuban life seems to extend to the ultimate. There appear to be no official bus route maps or printed timetables for any of the bus services to assist Havana’s two million citizens. That may not be too surprising, as many capitals in developing countries have limited budgets – but Cuba has around two million overseas visitors a year, and nearly all of them spend time in Havana. What is even more problematic is that bus stops are almost non existent in the city. Your only clue is a line of waiting people. However, you have no idea what bus they are waiting for, where that bus may be going or when it is supposed to turn up! The social convention, I believe, is to ask (if you can speak Spanish) the last person you think is in the queue if they are “in” the queue. Despite this, my English-speaking hotel receptionist told me that queue jumping in Havana is very much considered as being antisocial – unlike my earlier experiences in Central and Southern America. Having made this report, nevertheless I would recommend anybody to visit Cuba. It is a warm, friendly and casual country with a wonderful road passenger system that has a particularly Cuban approach to a particularly Cuban problem. • Mike Taylor is Principal Lecturer in Travel Marketing at the School of Services Management, University of Brighton, Sussex, UK.
People with disabilities constitute a significant proportion of the poor in developing countries. If internationally agreed targets on reducing poverty are to be reached, it is critical that specific measures be taken to reduce societal discrimination and isolation that people with disabilities continue to face. Transport is an important enabler of strategies to fight poverty by enhancing access to education, employment, and social services. A Department for International Development [DFID] funded project aims to further the understanding of the mobility and access issues experienced by people with disabilities in urban areas in developing countries, and to identify specific steps that can be taken to start addressing problems. A major objective is to compile a compendium of guidelines that can be used by government authorities, advocacy groups, and donors to improve access for people with disabilities (and all passengers) to transport in urban areas. The guidelines will specifically focus on low-cost, incremental approaches that can be implemented within constrained budgets in the developing world. Phase I of the project included an investigation into the mobility needs of people with disabilities in five case study countries (India, Malawi, Mexico, Mozambique and South Africa) and benchmark studies of current practice in Europe, Latin America, Africa and India. The needs analysis highlighted three major barriers to access and mobility: namely social, psychological and structural. Major obstacles identified by focus group participants were high transport costs, lack of awareness among transport staff and the general public of the needs of disabled passengers, and structural barriers in the transport system. The problems identified were remarkably similar across the countries studied, and also similar to obstacles that countries in Europe and North America have begun to remove. First steps in addressing mobility barriers have already been taken in countries of Latin America and Asia. Technical standards on access to transport are converging across developing and developed countries. Knowledge – that could be instructive to least developed countries in improving accessibility and mobility – is growing. Phase 2 included an investigation of technical and operational solutions and the prioritisation of improvements within constrained budgets. Smallscale demonstration projects have been successfully implemented in Pune, India, Blantyre, Malawi, and Maputo in Mozambique and surveys undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the projects to all users. The pictures illustrate a bus stand in Pune, which was modified to take account of disabled passengers’ needs. CILTWorld issue 9 21 NEWS FROM MEMBERS Improving access and mobility for people with disabilities By David Maunder*, TRL Limited These pictures show how a bus stand in India was modified for disabled passengers. The compendium of guidelines which will be enriched by the findings of the demonstration projects are presently being drafted by the projects multi national team and will be published in March 2004. Information and project outputs are available on the project web site, which can be accessed at www.transport-links.org. • Dr Maunder is currently a Vice President of the CILT, and Chair of the Africa Support Group.
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