Rethinking decision making through collaborative community planning

1st July 2019 by admin

The French philosopher and sociologist Henri Lefebvre interpreted space as an entity that is not static, but one that is alive and dynamically shaped through the interaction of people with it. He stressed on the importance of the production of space through these social relations over merely treating space as an object. We, however, live in a world which largely follows the technocratic planning principles for managing these spaces, rather than embracing the relations that form them.

Through understanding the relationship between people and their surrounding environment inherent to every space, the cities can ensure a demand-driven approach to solution making, where decisions are largely tailor-made than mass produced to the context. This will ensure a multidisciplinary approach to solution making, where there is open knowledge sharing and a collaborative work of different stakeholders. An intervention will thus have more credibility when it is shaped through a participatory approach involving all participants who have a stake in it.

The case of transformation along Sringeri Mutt Road

An interesting example of how the participatory deliberation of the people can shape spaces they live in was observed in the case of the tactical urbanism intervention along the Sringeri Mutt Road, facilitated by ITDP India Programme in Chennai. The quick and cost-effective initiative that was largely community driven, was aimed at enhancing the road and personal safety of the neighborhood, primarily women and children.

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Deepening Democracy: Innovations in Empowered Participatory Governance by A. Fung and O. Wright highlights three key principles of Empowered Deliberative Democracy which seem to be strongly embraced in this case.

The first principle speaks of ‘practical orientation’ of having a specific focus on tangible problems, which helps solve it through the next two principles. With abandoned vehicles and unauthorized parking lining the stretch along the canal, the dead spaces had become a breeding hub for anti-social activities. The tangible problems in this case were identified as the need to enhance road and personal safety for the street users in the neighborhood.

The second principle is about ‘bottom up participation’ which calls for including people directly affected by the problems, to serve as a channel for experts and citizens to work together. The direct involvement helps in increasing efficiency, trust, and accountability. The ITDP India Programme was able to measure the root cause of the concerns through initiating dialogues with the different stakeholders in the neighborhood. Those who faced the brunt were frequent users of the street, which were the local residents and the students and teachers of the neighboring school. The different layers of the problem were gradually unwrapped through site visits and discussions with these users

The third principle on ‘deliberative solution generation’ involves joint planning and problem solving through a process of deliberation. The participants hear out each other’s concerns and work together towards developing a solution through discussions than heated arguments.The fresh lease of life that the space witnessed was due to the efforts of the Chennai Traffic Police, Greater Chennai Corporation, civic action groups like Thiruveedhi Amman Koil Street Residents Association (TAKSRA) and Karam Korpom, Chennai High School (Mandaveli) and the ITDP India Programme.

***Sketch by the author on the case of Sringeri Mutt Road based on the principles of Empowered Deliberative Democracy***

This case showed alternate approaches to transformations that a city can witness, where deciphering the needs and solutions is a joint process with the people involved, than a top-down approach.

Moving towards a systemic change

The intervention on the ground, its success and the interest it has lit amongst the city officials to scale- up, draws parallels to stage model of social innovation discussed by Robin Murray, Geoff Mulgan and Julie Grice.

***Source:*** Stages of Social Innovation from ‘Social Innovation Regimes An Exploratory Framework to measure Social Innovation’ Castro Spila, Javier & Luna, Álvaro & Unceta, Alfonso (2016)

The tactical urbanism solution as a prototype addressed the poor social conditions that prevailed. The smiles that it achieved in bringing to the faces of the children and other users have reflected the triumph of the approach and the city is pushing towards scaling up these quick, low cost and community driven interventions to other areas.

Pugalis and Giddings in their work on ‘The renewed right to urban life’ extends on the Lefebvrian philosophy which values the coproduction of space. They bring up the concept and importance of ‘little victories’, small wins that add up to create strong ripples capable of bringing a systemic change. A systemic change involves the gradual reshaping of mindsets that have been accustomed to a set machinery and distribution of power. These steps to scale up the interventions, however reflect the possibility of bringing a systemic change that values the collaborative approach to decision making, by prioritizing the needs of the most vulnerable users. The interest of the city to facilitate this decentralized approach, indirectly shapes this into a coordinated decentralized system, taking the best of both systems.

As a country that has shaped through over seventy years of democratic politics, there is an inherent need to see citizenship as something that is as dynamic as a space itself. Urbanist Luigi Maza speaks of the dual nature of citizenship, one that is not just a bundle of rights and obligations, but a dynamic social process of the citizens contributing to the production of spaces, redesigning its rules and obligations. As the city adopts new ways of decision making, the citizens also have to start thinking outside the walls of the homes they have built and see the entire city as their home and contribute towards improving it. After all, as Jane Jacobs rightly put it, ‘Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody’.

Written by AV Venugopal

Edited by Kashmira Dubash

Capacity Development Shapes Tamil Nadu Towns for Urban Tomorrow

14th December 2018 by admin

Tamil Nadu is urbanising and based on recent trends, the state is expected to be the most urbanised by 2030. With 11 Tamil Nadu cities being part of the Smart City Mission, it reflects the aspiration and potential that smaller townships hold to become urban centres. This is where capacity building and development exercises help bridge their aspirations with realistic and sustainable solutions.

At this point, many municipalities are growing faster than their projected trajectory, which has begun disrupting the established planning layout. To counter this spurt of growth, municipal officials on most occasions resort to quick fixes or knee-jerk solutions which in the future can further accelerate their woes.

Taking notice of this worrying development, the Commissionerate of Municipal Administration (CMA), in partnership with the Tamil Nadu Institute of Urban Studies (TNIUS) and the ITDP India Programme, commissioned the capacity building programme on urban planning. The program was structured to help prepare town planners and panchayat officials to create streets and public spaces which meet the standards of upcoming smart cities.

Shifting from streets for vehicles, to streets for all

In the midst of modernisation, a key component of civic planning that is often overlooked is equitable street design. To help towns and municipalities reimagine and structure streets, beyond just accommodating the rampant vehicle population, the India Programme was brought on board to share its expertise in creating complete streets which adhere to every road users need.

As part of the course, the India Programme designed and conducted capacity development sessions for over 240 town planners from about 100 municipalities that was spread across three months.

In absence of such interventions, town planners tend to sway to the tune of vehicle-centric planning; this at the expense of safe footpaths and cycling facilities. While carriageways only get broader and footpaths narrower! Hence, such developmental workshops help officials realise the need for equality and accessibility while laying out streets. Emphasis was put on creating and improving infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists—who account as the primary occupants of Indian urban roads.

Making sense of Complete Streets

‘What are Complete Streets?’ When asked to express their understanding of the concept, the responses from officials varied from ‘streets that are planned for better vehicular passage’ to it being ‘foreign/alien’ to them.

So, what are Complete Streets?

Complete Streets are street layouts that cater to all user groups—regardless of their age, gender, ability, or mode of transportation. They are designed with wide and continuous footpaths, safe pedestrian crossings, separate cycle tracks (where applicable), bus stops designed to enhance convenience, designated on-street parking, organised street vending, and properly-scaled carriageways. These streets are designed to offer the best of convenience and comfort based on local needs and offer spaces for relaxation, play, and interaction.

Understanding the essence of Complete Streets

Since motor vehicles have been dominating every square inch of our urban infrastructure and design plans, the sessions began with a bit of a reality check. Participants, including town planning inspectors, executive officers, and town planning officers, were introduced to general facts such as modal share, infrastructure inadequacies, misconceptions regarding road infrastructure planning, etc.

This turned out to be an important step in the process, as it helped expose the misbelief that motor vehicles transport more people than any other transportation mode. Walking and cycling accounts for 40-50% of the total modal share, and just a quarter of urban trips are on personal motor vehicles.

To further quash the fallacy, officials were shown multiple images of vehicle-centric design plans which were riddled with flaws—unusable or absent footpaths, rampant on-street parking encroachments, haphazard pedestrian crossings, etc. On realising the potential threat such single-pronged plan would generate, more officials realised why streets need to designed for all users than just vehicles.

Providing the tools for change

Understanding the flaw is just one part of the solution, the next step required acceptance and gumption to resolve it. Hence, the following session looked to tackle the incessant argument claiming, ‘Our town streets aren’t like cities, they are too small to adopt such measures.’

By sensitising officials to multiple examples of Indian streets, each reclaimed and refurbished according to best practices, many of the skeptics were won over by the effectiveness of the Complete Street programme. For example, the redesign of JM Road and DP Road in Pune; which has been lauded across the country, even winning the Housing and Urban Development Corporation Award and the Volvo Mobility Award 2017.

Further on, the basic components of Complete Streets were broken down and each element was interactively explained to officials.

To further enable their understanding of the concept, ITDP’s resources—such as Footpath Fix and Footpath Design for designing and constructing standardised footpaths and Parking Basics and Park it Right for creating means for a parking management system—were discussed and later shared with the participants for further reference.

At the pace towns are developing in Tamil Nadu, 2030 does not seem like a distant future. Therefore, such capacity development sessions go a long way to instil concepts of sustainable and equitable mobility culture right at the grassroot levels. In essence, preparing these townships to meet their aspirations and ensure it is done for the people and not vehicles.

Written by Rohit James

Edited by Kashmira Medhora Dubash

People’s day out: Shoppers welcome T. Nagar Pedestrian Plaza

3rd March 2017 by admin

“He doesn’t want to leave yet! He hasn’t even had his breakfast, but in his enjoyment, he’s forgotten his hunger!” Mrs. Lalitha, a resident of T.Nagar, thus ended up spending the entire morning at Pondy Bazaar with her 7 year-old son Pranav. Pranav, who has nobody at home to play with, found not just games, but also company and a lot of space in T.Nagar to keep him entertained. His mother, who also participated in the games, reliving her childhood days, enjoyed a fun-filled, nostalgic shopping trip.

This alternate shopping experience was on the occasion of the second trial run of the proposed Pondy Bazaar Pedestrian Plaza. Owing to the success of the first trial run of the plaza, a second trial was organised by the Greater Corporation of Chennai on the 25th February, 2017 from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm along Sir Thyagaraya Road. Though a hit amongst the people who visited, the shopkeepers remained concerned that the plaza would affect their sales.

Pondy Bazaar, located in the heart of the city, is known for being a famous shopping destination, with both small stores and big brands lining the stretch. This shopping promenade is best experienced on foot, giving one the opportunity to stop-and-shop to one’s content. In order to transform this hub into a haven, a pedestrian plaza has been proposed along Sir Thyagaraya Road as a Smart City initiative.

As a first step towards creating this plaza — for collecting citizen feedback and building support for the project — a part of the road was converted into a pedestrian zone for the first trial run on November 20th, 2016, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Visitors witnessed a new Pondy Bazaar, bustling with activity and games throughout the morning. The lack of congestion despite diverted traffic further added to the success of the experiment.

The first trial run went on smoothly, with no traffic congestion

Similar to the first trial run, the 700m stretch between Thanikachalam Road junction and Panagal Park was closed off to cars, autos, shared autos and vans, during the second trial run. Two wheelers and buses were allowed along the stretch both ways, although on a shorter width of four meters on either side of the median. The traffic rerouting was quite successful, with incredible support from the Chennai Traffic Police.

Due to the longer duration of this trial, the activities were split into various slots across the morning and afternoon sessions. The morning was dedicated to kids, with games such as carrom, chess & life-sized snake & ladder, and activities like yoga, craft with newspaper & a drawing competition on Smart City. Young drummers and dancers dazzled the crowd in the afternoon while the elders learned more about first aid at the training camp organised by the NGO Alert. The health camps organised by the Corporation were also a hit among the older people. Restaurants set up tables & chairs outside, to serve those who wanted to snack while enjoying the outdoor activities.

In terms of facilities, parking was provided at the site of the proposed multi-storey car park at the Thanikachalam Road junction. On-street parking was also arranged for on Bashyam Road in front of Panagal park and Thyagaraya Road between Anna Salai and Nair road. Water and seating were provided all along the street at regular intervals for people’s convenience. Shuttle service in the form of battery-operated cars was made available for the elders.

Pedestrian counts and pedestrian user surveys were conducted to study the quantum of pedestrian traffic in this section of the street as well as collect public feedback. Vehicle-volume video surveys were also conducted at the intersections to study the flow of traffic and pile-up, if any. The results of these surveys, along with those from the first trial run, will be used to decide upon the final design of the proposed plaza.

Visualising the proposed T. Nagar pedestrian plaza

The shopkeepers were concerned about the loss of parking that will result from the pedestrian plaza, which they believe might affect their profits. The appointed consultants for the project, Darashaw, along with members of ITDP, explained to them that the idea of mandatory parking for shopping is a myth. Cases from the world over were presented to them.

Pedestrianisation across the globe

Cities across the world are celebrating the pedestrian and the cyclist. Many have created completely pedestrianised areas to provide better mobility for pedestrians, enhance the shopping experience & volume, and reduce pollution level and the number of accidents. Despite initial resistances, most of these projects have proven to be great successes.

Copenhagen, for instance, set out to pedestrianise its main shopping street, Stroget, in 1962. In the 1960s, the increasing number of vehicles led to growing pressure on Stroget for both moving traffic and parking. As a result, shoppers became confined to a narrow, almost non-existent footpath, with no room to stop-and-shop.

In 1962, 15,800 sq.m of pedestrian area was created. Today, a total of 100,000 sq.m once dedicated to motorised transit has been converted to traffic-free space for pedestrians in Copenhagen. Stroget now has 6 times more area for pedestrians than in 1962 with a 10-12m width carrying 145 people/min. More importantly, the shops have seen an increase in sales by 30%.

Similarly in New York, to ease traffic congestion throughout the midtown grid and improve pedestrian safety, mayor Bloomberg decided to pedestrianise Broadway around Times Square for a trial on May 24, 2009. Initially, the plaza had a few tables, 376 rubber folding chairs, potted plants and orange barrier cones.The plaza is now being redesigned permanently at $55 million.

After pedestrianisation, Times Square has seen a 33% reduction in traffic related injuries. Sales have risen by 71% – the biggest growth in history – and the number of shops has doubled. The testing of the Time’s Square pedestrianisation over the years has taught the world a valuable lesson – trials over a long period help understand the needs of the stakeholders better.

Snøhetta’s proposed design for Times Square

Pondy Bazaar pedestrian plaza to be rolled out soon

The Greater Corporation of Chennai aims to see the pedestrian plaza take shape on the ground by the end of the year. If all goes according to plan, Chennai will have a brand new, revamped public space in its centre, right on the street!

Coimbatore Smart Streets Exhibition marks the beginning of the city’s street transformation

1st March 2017 by admin

“This is a well-conceived project. If you can translate this into reality, it will be heaven”. This is what Mr. P. Nagaraj, an 83-year old citizen of Coimbatore, had to say after viewing the life-sized visualisations of the Model Roads on display at the Coimbatore Smart Streets Exhibition. His words echoed the opinion of many who attended the exhibition, all of whom eagerly await Coimbatore’s street transformation.

The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation organised the exhibition to inform the public in detail about the designs of the 6 Model Roads. People voiced their thoughts about the designs and the feedback collected will help shape the final designs of Coimbatore’s Smart Streets. The Coimbatore Street Design and Management Policy was also launched during the exhibition, marking an important milestone for the city!

The policy that has been adopted by the city, provides guidelines for the transformation of Coimbatore’s streets. Ambitious goals have been set to promote safe and equitable access for all users. These include increasing mode share of walking and cycling to at least 50% of all trips and that of public transport to 50% of all motorised trips in 15 years. The policy also aims to stabilise the number of vehicle kilometres travelled by personal motor vehicles (PMVs) by 2031, ensuring it does not exceed beyond 20% of the current figure.

The Coimbatore Street Design & Management Policy was launched in the presence of the dignitaries of the day: Left to Right – Mr. Sandeep Nanduri IAS, Commissioner of Madurai City Municipal Corporation, Mr. T.K.Majumdar, Director, Internal Finance, Ministry of Urban Development, Mr. Prakash Govindasami IAS, Commissioner of Municipal Administration, Ms. Shreya Gadepalli, Director- South Asia, ITDP, Dr. K.VIjayakarthikeyan IAS, Commissioner of Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation, Ms. P.Gandhimathi, Deputy Commissioner, Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation

At the inaugural event, the Commissioner of Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation, Dr. K. Vijayakarthikeyan IAS, explained that Model roads, as the name suggests, are those streets that will be exemplary of the kind that Coimbatore will have in the future – a model to look up to. These streets will include high quality walking and cycling facilities, improved access to public transport, organised parking & vending zones and streamlined junctions.The Model Roads project is an initiative by the Corporation under the Smart Cities Mission, hence the coinage of the term ‘Smart Streets’.

The Commissioner of Municipal Administration, Mr. Prakash Govindasami IAS delivered the special address at the event. “Everybody might not have a car, but we all have legs. We need to have the freedom to walk safely on the streets. And your voice should help make that happen”, stressed Mr. Prakash, explaining how the government inviting public participation in their initiatives, is the approach of this day and age.

The public raised interesting opinions about the design of the streets, including requests to provide bus bays and entry/exit angles in parking bays. Advait Jani, Program Coordinator at the Institute for Transportation and Developmental Policy, replied, “Buses tend to move straight instead of making the turn into and out of a bus bay. Also, bus bays eat up much space – space that could otherwise be provided to pedestrians for walking. As to turning angles in parking bays, they benefit only the first and last slots in a bay. The splays work only in taxi bays as there is continuous movement and a queuing system is followed.”

Another concern among the people was the absence of exit lanes at intersections, which might hinder with free flow of traffic. “Exit lanes are generally provided in highways where vehicles are expected to move fast and continuously, not at intersections on urban roads. Moreover, according to current traffic regulations, free lefts are forbidden. They are dangerous as well to the pedestrians crossing the road, and increase crossing distance”, said Advait Jani.

The intersection testing that was conducted along with the exhibition, helped the architects and transportation experts explain the concept better. The junction of TV Swamy and DB Roads is proposed to become an iconic intersection with increased safety for all users. The proposed design creates a tighter intersection and thus reduced vehicle turning speed. This was tested out on-site for a period of four days, with space at all 4 corners of the intersection reclaimed for the pedestrians with exciting artwork.

Following the exhibition, excavation has started on DB Road to allow for construction to begin soon. The Corporation has set a deadline of 3 months for the completion of DB and TV Swamy roads in the first phase of the project. Once constructed, these streets will become the pedestrians’ haven!

Voicing out: People shaping Pune’s public transport business plan

13th February 2017 by admin

“An online portal launched by the Government of India could be used to procure spare parts from traders at competitive rates.” “ PMPML (Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited) could look at fixed deposit investment plans for better fund-raising.” These ideas for PMPML’s business development plan were not suggested by a transport planner; neither by a banker nor a tech expert. These were suggestions from the young citizens of Pune at a citizens’ engagement workshop!

PMPML, the public transport service provider for the city of Pune, organised two such workshops in collaboration with Ernst & Young. The first workshop was held in Aundh on January 12th, 2017, followed by one in Pimpri on January 19th. The aim of the programme was to collect people’s feedback on existing public transport conditions in the city and their recommendations to improve bus services through PMPML’s business plan.

Pune’s youth voicing out their innovative ideas.

The business plan is an important step towards attaining a 40% modal share of public transport in the city – one of the goals in Pune’s comprehensive mobility plan. Ernst & Young & UMTC have been appointed to create the business plan. The business plan committee consisting of representatives from Nagrik Chetna Manch, Parisar, Pravasi Manch, Sajag Nagrik Manch & ITDP has helped PMPML put together the scope of work for the business plan and is also reviewing the consultants’ work.

The business plan will include short-term (3 years), medium-term (8-10 years) and long term (10-20 years) plans in order to achieve continued delivery of good service. Contrary to a business plan that generally comprises of purely technical details detached from the people and devoid of their inputs, PMPML’s plan is being made inclusive and people-oriented right from the scratch.

The citizens’ engagement workshops were a part of this strategy to include the public and get their on-ground opinion. During the workshop, several issues were brought forward, a majority of them focused on everyday transit ordeals. The physical condition of the bus, conflicts with the conductor and dissatisfaction with the driving, were a few of these concerns. The programme thus proved to be a good platform for PMPML to learn about these problems, which the agency has promised to resolve immediately.

Mr. Kunal Kumar, the commissioner of Pune Municipal Corporation, addressing the audience

Mr. Kunal Kumar, the chairman and managing director of PMPML, addressing the audience

Apart from micro-scale suggestions, macro-level long term ideas were also raised, especially by the youngsters in the crowd. These included ways to make the service more affordable and brand it better, for the benefit of both the users and the service provider. Another suggestion was to award points to PMPML employees as encouragement for good work. Fixed deposit investments could be considered for better fund-raising. Setting up an online portal to create a virtual marketplace for spare parts, thus promoting healthy competition among traders and better rates, was also suggested.

Comments from the workshops are currently being compiled to be included in the plan. Apart from the citizens engagement programme, people’s feedback is being collected in other methods as well such as on-board (during the journey) & off-board surveys by representatives from Ernst & Young. Photography, essay writing and slogan-phrasing competitions along with other contests have been organised to increase awareness of the use of public transport, while also gathering people’s thoughts on the issues.

By allowing people to voice out their opinion in different ways and acknowledging that stakeholders should play a key role in shaping any service for the people, Pune is setting a great example for other cities. Following Pune’s lead, Coimbatore is also organising an exhibition to showcase the design ideas for its Model Roads. This exhibition will also serve to collect people’s feedback on the proposal and help shape the final design. Coimbatore Smart Streets Exhibition is to be held on the 18th & 19th February, 2017.

Gauging Transportation Needs in Nashik, India

2nd April 2013 by admin

Conducting a household survey in a low-income area in Nashik

In early March, ITDP joined Clean Air Initiative-Asia to implement a rapid mobility assessment tool in Nashik, a city in western India about 150km northeast of Mumbai. The project, funded by UN-Habitat, seeks to create a quick and inexpensive way to gauge transportation needs in cities with little existing data. After reviewing existing data collection methods a new rapid assessment tool was developed, which consists of two parts: a household survey and a focus group discussion. The household survey aims to collect information about many different parts of the city while the focus group discussion aims to gather data from underrepresented groups whose important input might not be covered in the household survey. The city of Nashik was selected for the first test of the new tool.

In Nashik, the focus group discussion was held on Sunday, March 3, and included representatives of the blind, the disabled, women, the medical community, and the traffic police. The discussion brought forth a variety of perspectives on transportation, with particularly informative input from women and the disabled who discussed the daily challenges of safety and access that they faced when traveling around the city.

The household survey was conducted with help from the NDMVP’s Nashik College of Architecture-Nashik, National Institute of Technology (NIT)-Nashik, and the Institute for Design Environment and Architecture (IDEA) College. These student spent four hours on a Sunday learning the survey form and practicing techniques. The actual survey was conducted on three weekdays in over 12 neighborhoods, which were scouted ahead of time by the survey team. Students visited every part of Nashik, from informal settlements in the heart of the city to new, high-income areas in the outskirts.

Focus group discussion in Nashik

With oversight from university professors and the survey team, students went to a variety of households in each neighborhood. Over the course of three days, over 1,000 surveys were conducted. Each survey, conducted by a team of two students, took approximately one hour, and most households were happy to provide information in order to improve transportation in Nashik. From the survey, ITDP and Clean Air Asia learned a great deal about the City of Nashik and about conducting surveys in the Indian context. ITDP will further refine this tool for use in other cities that lack transportation data.