World Urban Forum

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• "One of the wisest water and sanitation specialists I have known noted that "the one thing poor people cannot afford is cheap water". What he meant was that if water supply is not paid for at an..."

  13 May 2012 on Water access = rich vs poor matter?

• "Hi Safira, I hope that Sao Paulo will give some consideration to Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) as well as buses, LRT and MRT. LRT is about half the cost per km of MRT and PRT is about half the per km..."

  12 May 2012 on First Weekend Poll-Discussion: Metro's versus Busses to improve urban...

• "We need more options such as urban planning should include systematic upgrading and services for slums. The formation of slums may be the least costly and in many ways most efficient way to expand..."

  11 May 2012 on Urban planning and the challenge of slums

• likes a comment: Ideally it should have been an integrated solution with quality &...

  11 May 2012

• "We need more options to consider and an integrated approach. Other options include bike and motorbike lanes as well as the new technology Personal Rapid Transit. For hill side communities,..."

  11 May 2012 on First Weekend Poll-Discussion: Metro's versus Busses to improve urban...

• "Hi Sunny, It is usual that rich and politically powerful people drive cars so that is why the money goes to more roads and parking space for cars. Start working with poor community groups to bring..."

  10 May 2012 on What is the future of cycling?

• "The only place I know that is relatively jam free is Singapore. It regulates who can buy a car through auction of rights (bidding may drive this up to more than the cost of the car!), levies..."

  10 May 2012 on JAM FREE CITIES

• "Matthew- Those slums and informal settlements you seem to dislike are in fact "green housing". They are mostly made of locally available and often recycled materials. They are very compact with..."

  10 May 2012 on Green housing for sustainable cities!

• "Most importantly, there should be separate bike and motorbike lanes which are also separated from the normal roads for cars. Of course, that depends on the numbers of people using bikes and..."

  10 May 2012 on Should there be a speed limit on bicycling?

• likes a topic: Greening the City - or re-imaging a city without its green spaces?

  9 May 2012

• "Lakes are another type of "green" space in cities. In Hanoi, for example, they have many lakes in the city and most have parks around them. Preserving urban lakes, rivers and canals is also..."

  9 May 2012 on Greening the City - or re-imaging a city without its green spaces?

• "Community-based security systems are extremely effective in many countries in Asia. In fact, it is often a main driving force for organizing the community. Especially in poor countries and..."

  9 May 2012 on Safer cities, security and crime prevention

• "I love the picture of the cable car serving low income communities on the hills. In Hong Kong they have put in a series of escalators on the hill. They run down during the morning rush hour but up..."

  9 May 2012 on Mobility Solutions to reduce Urban Poverty

• "I completely agree. Biking and walking are still the best solutions, but they are not really an alternative for most people who have already started using cars. Another interesting trend in China..."

  9 May 2012 on Mobility Solutions to reduce Urban Poverty

• "The first PRT in Asia is now being built in Amritsar India by a private investment company that expects to recover the entire cost through the fares charged. They are using the system developed for..."

  9 May 2012 on Mobility Solutions to reduce Urban Poverty

• "I just wrote a long response and then it got lost somehow. To answer your questions. It is called a Participation-Empowerment Index and it was published in "Building Partnerships for Urban Povery..."

  8 May 2012 on Urban planning tools and local identity

• "James, thanks for your reply. In Indonesia, as part of the implementation of Kampung Improvement, large areas of Jakarta and other cities informal "kampungs" were designated as residential areas..."

  8 May 2012 on What is the equitable city?

• "This was being done in Stockholm in the 60s when I was a graduate student at the University of Stockholm. Much of the low and middle income housing was done through large cooperative housing..."

  8 May 2012 on Managing urban land to ensure equity and sustainability

• "Affordable access to urban land and housing is critically important and difficult to achieve if land is privately owned and distributed in a market based system. The poor are left to squat illegally..."

  7 May 2012 on What is the equitable city?

• "Providing good public transportation systems subsidized by heavily taxing and regulating private cars is both good for the urban environment and helpful to the poor. However, to more effectively..."

  7 May 2012 on Mobility Solutions to reduce Urban Poverty

• "If local authorities have the authority and financial capacity to buy up land surrounding the city before it is developed they can then design a public transportation infrastructure, community..."

  7 May 2012 on Managing urban land to ensure equity and sustainability

• "Good urban planning will by definition be adapted to the local context because it must be based on consultation with the people. The effectiveness of planning is largely determined by the..."

  7 May 2012 on Urban planning tools and local identity