Discussion paper issued without formal editing FOR PARTICIPANTS ONLY 14 March 2017 ENGLISH ONLY UNITED NATIONS CENTRE FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT In collaboration with Ministry of Public Works and Transport, Lao People's Democratic Republic Ministry of the Environment (MOE), Japan Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, and United Nations Office for Sustainable Development INTERGOVERNMENTAL TENTH REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT (EST) FORUM IN ASIA, 14-16 MARCH 2017, VIENTIANE, LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC A Comprehensive Assessment of EST Progress and Achievements Made by Member Countries on the Implementation of the Goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration (Background Paper for EST Plenary Session-9) Final Draft ------------------------------------- This background paper has been prepared by Mr. Robert Earley for the Tenth Regional EST Forum in Asia. The views expressed herein are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations. DRAFT A Comprehensive Assessment of EST Progress and Achievements Made by Member Countries on the Implementation of the Goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration Pre-Final Draft March 2017 Submitted by: Mr. Robert Earley - i - DRAFT Table of Contents Section 1: Overview – Trends in Progress towards the Goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration . 1 Goal 1: Integrate land-use and transport planning ............................................................................. 1 Goal 5: Improving public transportation ............................................................................................ 1 Goal 13: Increasing safety .................................................................................................................. 2 New Technologies, New Trends ......................................................................................................... 2 Section 2: Country-by-Country and Goal-by-Goal Assessment of EST Progress and Achievements Made by Member Countries on the Implementation of the Goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration.................................................................................................................... 3 Methodology ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Results .............................................................................................................................................. 6 EST Strategies................................................................................................................................ 6 EST Goals ...................................................................................................................................... 7 Progress by countries .................................................................................................................... 7 Excluded countries......................................................................................................................... 8 Discussion ....................................................................................................................................... 11 Section 3: Recommendations and Conclusions ...................................................................... 12 References Cited .................................................................................................................. 13 Annex 1: Goal-by-goal, country-by-country detailed assessment of progress around the goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration (2010-2020) .......................................................................... 14 Annex 2: Country Progress Point Allocations ......................................................................... 90 - ii - DRAFT Section 1: Overview – Trends in Progress towards the Goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration The Fifth Regional EST Forum in Asia (2010, Thailand) marked a key moment in the development of environmental sustainable transportation policy, when the participants unanimously adopted the “Bangkok 2020 Declaration”, demonstrating commitment towards realization of safe, secure, affordable, efficient, and people- and environment-friendly transport systems in Asia. With the design and acceptance of the Declaration’s twenty EST goals and associated indicators, countries in Asia started along a systematic, thoughtful pathway, informed by the avoid-shift-improve strategy, to cleaner development through transportation. The Bangkok 2020 Declaration called for innovative and smart solutions to significantly reduce air pollution, traffic congestion and road accidents while moving towards a more livable and sustainable society in Asia. Today, nearly seven years after the adoption of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration, many countries in Asia have made use of these goals to establish policies, institutions, technologies, infrastructure, financing and partnerships to result in effective, efficient and beneficial transportation systems. What are some of the trends being observed as countries in Asia move towards the goals of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration? This section will seek to briefly review some of the new policies and initiatives being developed by countries including governance, technological interventions, motorized and non- motorized transportation policies, and use of the internet for new approaches to transportation. As will be described in detail in Section 2 of this report (see Figure 3), goals 1, 5 and 13 of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration have seen the most progress since 2010. These goals indicate what some of the trends might be in terms of implementation of EST principles in Asia, and the sections below will feature some of these trends. Goal 1: Integrate land-use and transport planning Integrated transportation and land-use planning has become a key feature of countries focused on EST. Planners have learned that when land-use is matched with public transportation in an intimate and integrated fashion, land-use planning can help ensure that there are enough riders to pay for public transport systems, while the public transport systems, if planned for convenience, can reduce costs for riders, and speed up local roads. The Republic of Korea described this relationship well in its report to the 7th Regional EST Forum, when it described its land-use and transport planning was integrated through budget, issue and place-centered comprehensive planning, bringing together urban authorities, transport authorities and finance under a common budget. While not all countries described integration so clearly, nearly all of the countries of the Regional EST Forum now have cities or national authorities that are bringing transport and land-use planning together to reap the benefits to their cities and economies. Goal 5: Improving public transportation BRT and MRT are the keywords for public transportation improvement in the Regional EST Forum. 12 of the 24 countries in the report have noted that they have either completed detailed planning or have BRT or MRT systems under construction in order to improve public transportation in their cities. BRT systems are especially noted for their relative ease and low-cost of installation, and their ability to improve the walkability of cities once they are in place. In addition to BRT systems, some countries such as Thailand, Pakistan and India are doubling down, using CNG buses to avoid the emissions associated with diesel buses. While energy prices remain low, and supply of natural gas is easy to acquire, this will be a trend in Asian cities that are increasingly dealing with diesel emission pollution. - 1 - DRAFT Goal 13: Increasing safety Safety is perhaps the top concern of governments in Asia when they are considering how to improve their transport systems, and this is the reason why Goal 13 has received the most attention through the EST process. Rates of collisions and traffic fatalities are very high in developing Asian countries, with some countries reporting that the equivalent of whole villages die on highways every year. Eleven countries have focused on reducing drink driving through enforcement and heavier penalties; Nine countries are improving speed regulation on roads as well as enforcement – including automated or enforcement or CCTV monitoring. Helmet and seat belt laws are also becoming more prevalent and better enforced. New Technologies, New Trends The P.R. China has revolutionized high-speed rail by rolling out the world’s largest high-speed rail system in a matter of a few years. While Japan and Republic of Korea have long had high-speed rail projects in place, other countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Viet Nam, Singapore, Malaysia and India have taken the cue from P.R. China that high-speed rail is very accessible and desirable for countries to improve their connectivity and avoid developing the high-carbon aviation industry. Bike sharing has likewise taken off in the past 5 years. Japan, India, P.R. China, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and the Republic of Korea are all in various stages of rolling out or encouraging bike- sharing in their countries. These systems, enabled by mobile phone technology or RFID cards or other payment systems, allow transit users to cut valuable minutes off their last mile trips from the public transport station. The P.R. China has seen another generation of bicycle sharing rolled out over the past year by the private sector. Mobike,