Bus v/s Metro debate unnecessary: Global urban mobility expert Ramírez

Felipe Ramírez , urban mobility director, WRI.

The debate over bus versus Metro rail is unnecessary and cities should get the benefit of having every single mode of transport, said Felipe Ramírez, renowned global urban mobility expert.

Speaking to Moneycontrol in Bengaluru on the sidelines of the event - 'transforming urban mobility in mega cities: lessons from Bogotá', Ramírez, who is the urban mobility director at World Research Institute, said: “We should stop picking sides between Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Metro because both are needed. We require Metro, BRT, trams, cable cars as well as bicycle lanes and pedestrian paths for last mile connectivity."

Ramírez, the former secretary of mobility for Bogotá, said: “Bogotá has one of the biggest BRT systems in the globe and now we are now integrating other transit modes. We also have 590 km of bicycle lanes as well as a public bicycle sharing system."

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The Colombian capital city, he said, is also planning a Metro network of 27 km in the first phase and funds have been sanctioned for the second line.

In Bogotá, there are 2,500 buses in the BRT system, according to Ramirez. “We have another 9,000 - 10,000 buses for the urban system. So those that are within the mixed traffic are less efficient, of course, because they are in traffic, they are with cars, they are not as efficient as the ones that have exclusive lanes (BRT) .”

“So those 9,000 to 10,000 buses, transport around 2.5 million passengers. We are able to serve the same volume of passengers with the 2,500-strong BRT system. This is just to demonstrate the difference in efficiency when there are dedicated lanes for buses. You can transport more people with fewer buses,” he said.

“My advice to urban planners is to build wider pedestrian paths. In cities like Bengaluru, there are more trees so it cools down the temperature level and citizens will be able to move around in bicycles. People will use it if they have safe and segregated bicycle paths,” he said.

In Bengaluru, he said, the city centre really has good pedestrian paths and some 2 km bicycle lanes. “These are really good examples but we should keep doing it. We also should ensure that it is connected like a network otherwise people will never feel safe and they will not use it."

In Bogotá, ‘Sunday Ciclovia’ - where most streets are closed on Sundays and public holidays and only pedestrians are allowed - is a tradition that's been observed since 1976. “Our people understand that sustainable transport is very, very important," said Ramírez.

Bogotá, unlike India, has only split flyovers at traffic interactions. “There are no flyovers which spread across kms in Bogotá. Those only help car users."