A good transport system can be a key element when evaluating
a city and/or country and its level of comfort with the citizen. Integrated
Transport Systems (SIT); that include different forms of mobility, both
motorized and active, that are friendly to the environment, accessible, and
safe, is what every city should achieve.
Currently, Peru is being inefficient in its strategies to
provide a comfortable city and sustainable transportation adequate to the needs
of its citizens.
What is Lima doing wrong?
There are several aspects in which public policies are being
deficient, positioning Peru in seventh place with the worst traffic congestion
in the world, only behind Bogotá in America (TomTom, 2019).
Some shortcomings:
1.- Domain of informality - Lack of an Integrated Transport
System (ITS)
Lima has a high percentage of informal transportation that
is unsafe, polluting, without a flat rate, and not very accessible. These are
precisely some aspects that go against achieving a SIT within the cities. This
informal transport was born in the 90s when public transport was not considered
an urgent need for the common citizen within urban policies.
Currently, actions are being carried out in order to have a
better public transport system, however, these do not fit within the concept of
a SIT. For example, Lima has been acquiring gas buses, however, these buses
have too high steps that become obstacles for people from the vulnerable group.
In addition to not having friendly access, they do not have enough space for a
baby carriage, a bicycle or a wheelchair. In conclusion, investment is being
made in public transport buses whose only difference with the current fleet is
the use of natural gas as an energy source, but this does not make them the
change that Lima and Peru need to integrate different forms of mobilization.
2.- Delayed reaction instead of adequate planning
Those in charge of making decisions within the government
have been characterized by reacting late to problems, instead of having a
planning philosophy for proper implementation and maintenance in relation to
the architecture built in the city. This is demonstrated, for example, in the
latest wave of provisional cycle lanes, which do not meet minimum standards and
are not only uncomfortable for cyclists, but deadly for them. Painting a line
on the road and placing PVC cones or bollards does not convert these attempts
at bicycle paths into the infrastructure that citizens need to change their way
of moving within the city.
Another point that this article wants to highlight is the
lack of maintenance of tracks and cycle paths. Their poor condition causes
traffic congestion and, worse still, accidents in many cases. According to the
Association of Traffic Accident Victims (Aviactran) there are up to 10 holes
per km in the city of Lima. Likewise, according to the NGO Luz Ámbar, roads in
poor condition reach 70% of the total in the capital (Villegas, 2018).
3.- Lack of information
Another fundamental aspect in any efficient city is that it speaks for itself through infographic material such as information panels, transport maps, route information, mobile phone applications and others.
Unfortunately, in Lima this basic informative characteristic
for a SIT has not been developed. Upon arriving in Lima, both by air and land,
anyone will feel uninformed, lost and disoriented. A clear example is that at
the Jorge Chávez International Airport itself, there is no map or informative
guide on how to get to the main districts of the capital. Informality in public
transport in Peru is so serious that when using a mobile application known
worldwide as Google Maps, it does not provide any answer on suggested routes
for public transport. Google Maps does not find any options for bicycles
either, since there is no cycle path network that maintains continuity and
ensures good connectivity.
Some solutions
It is on the critical points described in this article that
the government and transport managers within the cities in Peru should focus.
Work on prevention and not on improvised reactions when the problem is already
affecting the citizen. Alternative public transportation buses should be sought
that not only reduce environmental pollution, but are also inclusive, easily
accessible, and wide enough for bicycles, baby strollers, and wheelchairs. In
addition, and urgently, active transport must be promoted through equipment
with adequate infrastructure for it. Finally, work on the creation of a public
transport map where any person, Peruvian or foreign, can be guided and find out
the most effective way to reach their destination.
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