Transforming cities with transit : transit and land-use integration for sustainable urban development

This study explores the complex process
of transit and land-use integration in rapidly growing
cities in developing countries. It first identifies barriers
to and opportunities for effective coordination of transit
infrastructure and urban development. It then recommends a
set of policies and implementation measures for overcoming
these barriers and exploiting these opportunities.
Well-integrated transit and land development create urban
forms and spaces that reduce the need for travel by private
motorized vehicles. Areas with good access to public transit
and well-designed urban spaces that are walkable and
bikeable become highly attractive places for people to live,
work, learn, play, and interact. Such environments enhance a
city's economic competitiveness, reduce local pollution
and global greenhouse gas emissions, and promote inclusive
development. These goals are at the heart of
transit-oriented development (TOD), an urban form that is
increasingly important to sustainable urban futures. This
book uses a case study approach. It draws lessons from
global best-case examples of transit-oriented metropolises
that have direct relevance to cities in developing countries
and elsewhere that are currently investing in bus rapid
transit (BRT) and other high-capacity transit systems. It
also reports the results of two original in-depth case
studies of rapidly growing and motorizing cities that
introduced extended BRT systems: Ahmedabad, India and
Bogota, Colombia. Two shorter case studies enrich the
understanding of factors that are critical to transforming
cities with transit.