UN HABITAT

Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements 2013

Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility argues that the development of sustainable urban transport systems requires a conceptual leap. The purpose 'transportation' and 'mobility' is to gain access to destinations, activities, services and goods. Thus access is the ultimate objective of transportation. As a result, urban planning and design should focus on how to bring people and places together, by creating cities that focus on accessibility, rather than simply increasing the length of urban transport infrastructure or increasing the movement of people or gods. Urban form and the functionality of the city are therefore a major focus of this report, which highlights the importance of integrated land-use and transport planning.

SLoCaT: "The report unequivocally makes the message that sustainable transport is not about about avoiding the negative effects of transport such as air pollution, climate change, road safety or congestion but that sustainable transport is important first and foremost because of the enabling role it has for economic and social development."

UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-moon: “Getting mobility right can mean the difference between a struggling city and a thriving one, Mobility is not a question of building wider or longer roads. It is about providing appropriate and efficient systems that serve the most people in the best, most equitable manner.”

Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Dr. Joan Clos: “Mobility is not just about developing transport infrastructure and services; it is about overcoming the social, economic, political and physical barriers to movement, such as class, gender relations, poverty, physical disabilities and affordability. The right to equitable access is about empowering people to exercise their basic human rights to the fullest."

The partnership on Sustainable Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT) has requested its members on behalf of UN HABITAT to disseminate the report and message of the "Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements 2013" by UN HABITAT. Sustainable Transport Africa have made both the abridged and full versions of the report available for down load here.