Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen FB 07: Mathematik und Informatik, Physik, Geographie Institut für Geographie Challenges of Traffic Development in Kabul City vorgelegt von Dipl. Geograph Walid Ahmad Noori Dissertation Zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades Dr. rer.nat im Fachbereich Geographie Gießen, November 2010 Acknowledgements It is my pleasure to say my thanks to my advisor Prof. Dr. Andreas Dittmann for his time and his kind cooperation. I would like to express my gratitude to Dominik Schmid who was very supportive through reading and commenting my dissertation. I also express my best regards to Bernd Goecke, Nadine Vorbeck and Lisett Diehl for preparing the maps as well as Johannes Werner who proof read this dissertation. There are many people in Kabul University and Geography institute of Giessen whom I cannot name all and were so kind and supportive. I wish to thank them all. The Afghan Ministry of Higher Education as well as the Chancellor of Kabul University and the German Academy for Exchange Programs (DAAD) gave me the opportunity to come to Germany and to study and develop my knowledge. To all of them I owe this opportunity and to them I wish to express my best regards. Walid Ahmad Noori Giessen October, 2010 Table of Contents 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1 1. 2 Conceptual Framework .................................................................................... 4 1. 2. 1 Transportation System and Urban Structure .................................................... 5 1. 2. 2 Transportation Management Elements ............................................................. 7 1. 2. 3 Private Transportation Improvement (administrative management).............. 17 1. 2. 4 Non motorized improvement ......................................................................... 19 1. 2. 5 Land Use Management (decentralization) and Work Schedule Changes ...... 19 1. 3 Hypotheses on Traffic Collapse in Kabul City .............................................. 21 1. 4 Methodology and Data Collection ................................................................. 22 2 Kabul City Structure and Population ............................................................. 25 2. 1 Kabul’s Urban Development-A historical perspective .................................. 25 2. 2 Sprawling of Kabul ........................................................................................ 39 2. 3 Physical Isolation ........................................................................................... 41 2. 4 Future Development of Kabul City and Boundaries Definition .................... 42 2. 5 Kabul City Function and Population .............................................................. 45 3. Organizational Urban Transport Infrastructure in Kabul City ....................... 50 3. 1 The Gvernmental Transportation System (Fleet Operation) .......................... 53 3. 1. 1 The “Millie Bus” Operation System .............................................................. 54 3. 1. 2 The Trolley Bus System ................................................................................. 62 3. 2 Formal Private Transportation (Public - Private Collaboration) .................... 66 3. 2. 1 Registered private Transportation Unions (fleet operation) ........................... 68 3. 2. 3 Informal Public Transportation (Paratransit) ................................................. 70 3. 2. 3. 1 Intermediate Public Transportation ................................................................ 74 3. 2. 3. 2 Private Cars Operation for the Public ............................................................ 76 3. 2. 3. 3 Auto-Rickshaw ............................................................................................... 76 i 3. 3 Private Motorized Transportation modes ....................................................... 77 3. 3. 1 Private Cars .................................................................................................... 80 3. 3. 2 Motorcycles .................................................................................................... 80 3. 4 Non-motorized Transportation ....................................................................... 81 3. 4. 1 Walking .......................................................................................................... 82 3. 4. 2 Bicycles .......................................................................................................... 83 3. 4. 3 Handcarts ........................................................................................................ 80 3. 4. 4 Animal transportation ..................................................................................... 81 3. 5 Goods transferring system .............................................................................. 81 3. 5. 1 Governmental Transportation Company ........................................................ 85 3. 5. 2 Formal Private Freight Unions ....................................................................... 86 3. 5. 3 Informal Goods Transportation ...................................................................... 86 4. Technical Urban Transportation Infrastructure in Kabul City ....................... 87 4. 1 Roads and Road Condition-Technical point of view ..................................... 87 4. 1. 1 Road Users-Administrative point of view ...................................................... 93 4. 1. 2 Hawkers and small Mobile Shops as Road Users .......................................... 93 4. 1. 3 The abuse of Roads as parking places ............................................................ 94 4.2 Roads in Unplanned Areas ............................................................................. 96 4. 3 Bridges and Underground Passages ............................................................... 97 4. 4 Foot paths ..................................................................................................... 100 4.5 Parking Places in the City Center ................................................................. 101 4. 6 Bus Terminals and Bus Stops ....................................................................... 102 4. 6. 1 Planned main Bus Terminals ........................................................................ 102 4. 6. 2 Unplanned Bus Terminals or “Pick Up Areas” ............................................ 103 5 Administrative Urban Transport Infrastructure (Traffic Management and Signage) ........................................................................................................ 104 5. 1 Traffic Police-Tasks and Challenges-A historical Perspective .................... 104 ii 5. 2 The organization of the „Kabul Traffic Office” ........................................... 106 5. 2. 1 Losing professional Employees and the Employment of Non-professionals ...................................................................................................................... 106 5. 2. 2 Administrative Challenges and Problems at the Kabul Traffic Office ........ 107 5. 3 Traffic Department at the Police Academy .................................................. 108 5. 4 Traffic Signage and Road Arrangement ....................................................... 112 6 Analyzing the Existing Transportation System, Demand and Approaches . 114 6. 1 Negative Effects of the City Sprawling on the Transportation System ....... 114 6. 2 Negative Effects of Multiple Linguistic Structure of the City…………….117 6. 3 Deficiencies of the organizational Urban Transportation Infrastructure ..... 117 6. 4 Deficiencies of technical Urban Transportation Infrastructure .................... 120 6. 5 Deficiencies of administrative Urban Transport Infrastructure ................... 123 6. 6 Forecasting Traffic Demands ....................................................................... 124 7. Conclusion .................................................................................................... 126 Literature ...................................................................................................... 133 List of Tables Table 2.1: Kabul City land use classification………………………………………33 Table 2.2: Distribution of the housing stock by type in 2004……………………...40 Table 2.3: Monthly income of the workforce employees………………………….48 Table 3.1: Countries which donated buses to the Millie Bus company 2007……...54 Table 3.2: Municipal Bus Lines 2007……………………………………………...56 Table 3.3: Provincial Bus Lines from Kabul to the nearby provinces and districts 2007……………………………………………………………………..57 Table 3.4: Capacity and fare price of transportation modes in Kabul City 2009…..60 Table 3.5: Millie Bus company in service for governmental organization 2005.61-62 Table 3.6: Formal private transportation unions registered at Ministry of transportation 2007……………………………………………………..67 Table 3.7: Existing vehicles in Kabul City………………………………………...71 iii Table 3.8: Number of taxi unions in Kabul City 2008……………………………..72 Table 3.9: Travel options 2009…………………………………………………….73 Table 3.10: Imported vehicles to Afghanistan 2007………………………………...79 Table 3.11: Imported vehicles to Afghanistan and registered vehicles at Kabul Traffic Office 2007…………………………………………………………79-80 Table 4.1: Type of roads refers to the Kabul City road network master plan……...89 Table 4.2: Money donated to Kabul municipality for construction and reconstruction of Kabul City main roads……………………………….90