Leeds Thesis Template

Understanding the Governance of Reforms to Urban Transport in Developing Cities Syed Fatimah Binti Kamal Batcha Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Leeds Institute for Transport Studies May 2013 The candidate confirms that the work submitted is her own and that appropriate credit has been given where reference has been made to the work of others. This copy has been supplied on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. © 2013 The University of Leeds and Syed Fatimah Binti Kamal Batcha The right of Syed Fatimah to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 - ii - Acknowledgements This Phd study has been a long process however worthwhile. Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to the Malaysian Government for the generous funding and opportunity to pursue my study in the United Kingdom. I would like to sincerely and graciously thank my supervisors. I am most lucky to have learned from my main supervisor Professor Greg Marsden and grateful for the opportunity and privilege to be his student. I am most indebted to him for his commitment, guidance, understanding and patience in dealing with my English expressions and the list could go on endlessly. I am also much grateful to my second supervisor, Frances Hodgson, who has shared her valuable insights and experience, and patiently guided me through the qualitative method and analysis. There are many individuals who assisted me in my study and research process. I am indebted to those who participated in my research and helped me with field work in Bangalore; Dr Ashish Verma, Dr Sanjay Gupta, Dr Prodyutt Dutt, Madam V. Manjula, Khalandar Khan, Nawaz, Reddy Krishna, Nivedita Dash and all members of CISTUP, IISC where I was attached as a short-term research student. My special thanks also goes to all my research participants, friends and colleagues in Malaysia; Datuk Himmat Singh, Dr Aminuddin, Dr Sabariah, Professor Farhan, Mr Selvarajoo, Mr Farizul and many more who have given support and help in one way or another. Although I cannot list everyone here, I will always remember you for your kindness and help extended to me. A big thank you to Nurul Hidayati, Rawia El-Rashidy, Keith Harrison, Dr Caroline Mullen, Evona Teh, Fahmi and all Phd students and staff of ITS for the valuable friendship, support and encouragement. Without them, this journey would have been lonely and unbearable. I must express my deepest appreciation to my parents for their selfless support and prayer that have given me strength throughout this Phd journey. Last but not least, many thanks to my husband, Al-Zambri and two children, Farlina and Syahmi, for the endless love, support and believed that this journey would be completed someday – and it did! Thank you to all of you, named and unnamed. Fatimah 2013 - iii - Abstract Numerous international development agencies and researchers advocate the use of dedicated transport authorities in urban areas as a means for strengthening the institutional frameworks needed to improve transport services in cities. While such bodies are widespread in developed countries, little is known about the benefits and drawbacks of their use in developing Asian cities. The very different institutional contexts into which such management would be integrated raise some interesting questions as to how effective such models could be in these cities. This thesis examines two transport authorities that have been created to improve the coordination of urban transport in the Asian region – the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) in Malaysia, and the Bangalore Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) in Bangalore, India. The aim is to explore the motivations underpinning the reforms and the creation of these two bodies, as well as to understand how the reforms have subsequently unfolded in terms of their implementation, these agencies’ abilities to implement their plans, the outcomes they have achieved and the problems they experience. This research utilises a qualitative approach to undertake a cross-national case study through semi-structured interviews of stakeholders in the urban transport sector, including civil servants, politicians, private sector workers and academics. The data from these interviews was augmented by assessment of written materials. The findings show how the creation and empowerment of SPAD and the BMLTA have been influenced by contextual factors and constraints that arose during their implementation. These findings also provide insights into factors that determine the performance of these authorities. The creation of SPAD and BMLTA which aimed to change the way urban transport was governed in their contexts, has only provided a partial degree of success. The reforms have been successful in Malaysia to a certain extent as it has a clear operational mandate. By contrast, in Bangalore, the reforms have achieved only weak coordination. The reforms were dominated by the existing institutional landscape and power struggles. With strong political leadership, some aspects of this can be overcome, but not to the extent that these bodies have control over the range of policy tools needed to deliver a truly integrated transport strategies. - iv - Table of Contents Acknowledgements..................................................................................... ii Abstract ....................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ....................................................................................... iv List of Tables ............................................................................................... x List of Figures ........................................................................................... xii Abbreviations ........................................................................................... xiii Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ..................................................................................... 1 1.2 Rationale for the study .................................................................... 1 1.3 The research questions ................................................................... 4 1.4 The structure of the thesis............................................................... 6 Chapter 2: Literature Review...................................................................... 9 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................... 9 2.2 Transport challenges in developing countries .............................. 9 2.3 Transport authorities in developing countries.............................. 12 2.3.1 Proposals by International Development Agencies ..... 13 2.3.2 Proposals by researchers ........................................... 15 2.4 Transport authorities in developed countries .............................. 17 2.5 Concepts related to transport authorities .................................... 23 2.5.1 Decentralisation .......................................................... 23 2.5.2 Coordination and integration ....................................... 27 2.5.3 Power .......................................................................... 29 2.5.3.1 Authority and autonomy .......................................... 32 2.5.3.2 Accountability .......................................................... 33 2.5.4 Decision-making power ...................................................... 35 2.6 The concept of governance......................................................... 37 2.7 Institutional complexity and reforms ............................................ 39 2.7.1 Public management reform ................................................ 41 2.7.2 Factors influencing public management reforms ............... 43 - v - 2.7.3 The outcomes of reforms ................................................... 45 2.8 Chapter summary ........................................................................ 47 Chapter 3: The Case Study Sites ............................................................. 50 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................... 50 3.2 Transport in Malaysia .................................................................... 51 3.2.1 Transport governance in Malaysia prior to the creation of SPAD .............................................................................. 53 3.2.1.1 Institutional structure ............................................... 53 3.2.1.2 Acknowledged institutional issues ........................... 57 3.2.1.3 Milestones in the creation of SPAD ......................... 60 3.2.2 Transport governance after the creation of SPAD ............. 64 3.3 Urban transport in Bangalore ........................................................ 67 3.3.1 Transport governance in the Bangalore Metropolitan Region prior to the creation of BMLTA ................................ 69 3.3.1.1 Institutional structure ............................................... 69 3.3.1.2 Issues in urban transport governance in Bangalore .................................................................... 76 3.3.1.3 Policies supporting institutional reform in the transport sector in the State of Karnataka

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