outreach and engagement in urban transport

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT | www.worldbank.org/socialdevelopment

Outreach and Engagement in Urban Transport

The case of Lima, Peru and Beijing, China

Outreach and Engagement in Urban Transport

• Transport Planning typically a large scale exercise

• 10,000s of surveys, data cleanup, model development -> multi year process

Outreach and Engagement in Urban Transport

• It’s hard to get a sense of detailed on the ground issues – particularly for non-car modes

• “Seeing the invisible”• Innovation Fund Proposal: Use ICT to

address these issues

7

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT | www.worldbank.org/socialdevelopment

Send reports via mobile phone, email, web

10

SMS phoneSmart Phone

Web Form

Email

How Can ICT help?

Two Stories

• Lima, Peru• Beijing, China

Lima, Peru

• Strong, Existing NGO (La Factura)• Datea.pe platform developed out of

grassroots activism on new BRT corridor

Lima, Peru

• Bank support allowed for expansion into cycles

• Also enabled a direct connection to government in Lima and Peru

• Platform flourished and expanded with support of key public officials

Lima, Peru

• But, lessons mixed.• When individual officials in Lima government lost

interest, platform waned• “New” technology will rely on plugging into existing

“old” systems of governance• Are not stand alone solutions• How can these new technology platforms (see click

fix, open311, TSD, Ushahidi) be used as part of a strategy to get governments willing and able to respond to citizen feedback?

Beijing - The story so far

• Long term research partnership with Beijing Transport Research Center (BTRC) Many non-lending research projects Strong ongoing collaboration Share an ongoing updated list of research topics, one

of which was enhancing cycling Pay their own staff costs and time

• Bank team awarded first round of Innovation Grant Funding to develop a first-ever Urban Transport Ushahidi platform in China (small $$)

http://ourtransport.net

Beijing - The story so far

• BTRC primarily a data and analyis center – need a partner to focus on outreach to the public

• A final team member – Friends of Nature – China’s oldest official NGO

• Recently begun work on cycling and green commuting, including mapping

Network of Partners

Beijing Challenges

Many!...• Social Media is sensitive, web outreach too

8 months to secure a domain (done!)

• Sustained interest/outreach from the public• Public Action/Acceptance• Data Quality/Cleanup

Beijing Next Steps

• Launching (finally) this Spring• Two events planned – one university based,

on ‘on street’

Conclusions

• Two cities, different lessons (so far)• Common to many new platforms/programs

across the world. So we’re eager to share, and learn…

Contact

• Shomik Mendiratta (smehndiratta@worldbank.org)

• Andrew Salzberg• (asalzberg@worldbank.org)