MOBILIZING DEVELOPMENT

Sustainable Transport - What It Delivers 12
1.1 ACCESS—AT THE HEART OF
SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT
Transport is not an end in itself, but rather a means allowing
people to access what they need: jobs, markets and goods,
social interaction, education, and a full range of other
services contributing to healthy and fulfilled lives. This
broader concept of “access” is a useful lens for approaching
the SDGs, which all can be achieved when people are able
to access what they need: sustainable livelihoods, food,
healthcare, education, safe communities and spaces, and
opportunities for sustainable economic growth.
In some cases, other means of access are available—
telecommuting, remote education and health consultations,
e-commerce, and perhaps in the near future, 3-D printing,
can all make some transport less necessary or at least
change the tempo and nature of the demand. In addition,
compact, well-planned cities and towns can offer people
the ability to access what they need without long trips.
Nonetheless, moving people and freight over short and
long distances remains vital to development. Transport
connects the hinterland to urban centres. Road, rail
and inland waterway transit corridors crossing national
borders, maritime shipping, and air freight routes all
enable trade, which, in turn, fosters development.
The key is meeting the needs of people in their
personal and economic lives while respecting the
ability of future generations to meet their needs: the
essence of sustainable development.
For decades, transport policies focused on providing
mobility based on motorized transport and improving
traffic speed. Using the word ‘access’ in the context of
transport was synonymous with building new roads and
other infrastructure mainly benefitting the use of private
cars. The motivation was access to transport. With the
shift to sustainable transport comes a paradigm-shifting
focus on people and their quality of life—the concept of
access through transport, as well as increased attention
to safety and social equity in transport.
Leaving No One Behind
The 2030 Agenda will succeed only if it reaches all
countries, all communities and all people—if no one
is left behind. As Bénédicte Frankinet, the Permanent
Representative of Belgium to the United Nations, said,
“the success of the [Sustainable Development] Goals
will be determined by how much the lives of the most
vulnerable are improved.” 15
Sustainable transport plays a fundamental role in
overcoming the social exclusion of vulnerable groups.
SDG target 11.2 explicitly calls on the international
community to work toward sustainable transport for
all people: By 2030, provide access to safe, affordable,
accessible and sustainable transport systems for all,
improving road safety, notably by expanding public
transport, with special attention to the needs of those
in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with
disabilities and older persons.
By enabling women to access markets and jobs, as well as
a range of social and health services, transport promotes
women’s economic empowerment and social inclusion.
Essential to this is that transport systems are designed to
safeguard the personal security of all travelers. Station
and route planning, community awareness raising, and
effective policing are critical to increase the confidence
of both young and older women to move freely in public
places and use public transport. 16
Transport services themselves must also be physically
accessible to older and disabled people. Article 9 of the
UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
sets out the imperative that “in order to enable persons
with disabilities to live independently and participate
fully in all aspects of life, appropriate measures should
be taken to ensure to persons with disabilities access, on
an equal basis with others, to the physical environment,
to transportation, to information and communications,
including information and communications technologies
and systems, and to other facilities and services open or
provided to the public, both in urban and in rural areas.” 17
It is increasingly recognised by transport authorities,
service providers and operators that improvements to
the accessibility of the transport system as a whole mean
a better quality of transport for all users. Higher quality
vehicle design, infrastructure, driver training, information
and many other factors contribute to a more equitable
system, and, in this way, accessibility is a key element in
ensuring the social sustainability of the transport sector. 18
For all vulnerable groups, as well as for migrant
communities and people living in remote and low
density rural areas, safe, accessible and reliable transport
services are a lifeline.