Cities' challenges in urban transport

Networks are inherent elements of the cities and transportation is one the major urban infrastructure sectors that has been changing over the years in response, among others, to the intensification of urbanisation and to the turn of the cities into global actors. This is the second in a series of issues to focus on the different urban infrastructures, and it includes a range of articles on urban transport:

- The unrealized potential of Personal Rapid Transit, by Sgouris Sgouridis

Personal Rapid Transit can be a game-changing concept for private transport in congested urban environments with high costs of vehicle ownership. Practical automated vehicle technology and efficiency gains will outweigh the inertia for PRT adoption.

- Evolution of the transportation system in Dubai, by Abdul Ghaffar Chaudhry

Public transport is vital for sustainable development. Dubai has embraced this challenge successfully through its 6-pronged approach of development and is becoming a model of excellence for the region.

- Urban mobility in a financially-constrained world: vehicle-sharing systems as a viable alternative, by Dimitrios Efthymiou and Constantinos Antoniou

The rising costs of car-ownership have forced urban travelers to seek alternative mobility solutions. Vehicle-sharing offers a viable alternative that is gaining traction, and still has a lot of potential for growth.

- Local approaches to global systems: the material culture of dolmus in Istanbul, by Ozge Merzali Celikoglu and Hilmi Berk Celikoglu

This study examines the role of dolmus in Istanbul’s transportation system. The analysis focuses on its socio-cultural dimensions and on its position in the urbanization process and in the public transportation system of Istanbul.

The next issues will cover the following urban infrastructure sectors: energy systems, water and sewage, and telecommunications.