“The city already has the blueprint ready and actually can become the face of Net Zero transition if the government starts emphasising on all relevant sectors.” – Experts state in the latest IPCC Report on Climate Change published on 4th April, 2022.
A big mention of Kolkata’s public transport system as an illustrative case study
With regards to integrated climate action, the IPCC Report draws its focus towards Kolkata calling it as an ‘illustrative case study” in public transportation.
Details:
1. Kolkata offers 12 different modes of transportation each having its own system structure and serving as a means of mobility to its 14 million citizens.
- The best part about the public transport system in Kolkata is that it is shared, be it an autorickshaw to hundreds together, metro or local trains. Government authorities have acted as important stakeholders to the public transportation system by collaborating with other stakeholders such as individual auto rickshaw operators to cab – app owners to formalise certain semi – formal modes of transport. The public authorities have also purchased fuel efficient AC buses in lieu of the city’s humid weather.
- Certain measures such as the bicycle ban have been faced with opposition as well owing to concerns about social equity as this means of transport caters to the livelihood means of thousands.
- The report is reflective of the need for a policy level change to be implemented in the city to coordinate the diversity that exists within the public transport mode in the city of Kolkata.
- Scope for Improvement: A lot however needs to be done like bringing in more of an environment friendly, Compressed Natural Gas mode of transport, rooting for trams and bringing focus to waterways as well.
The Kolkata case study was part of a list of nine case studies, including those of cities from Indonesia, Brazil, Ghana, China, European Union, Germany, Finland and Uganda.
0 
0 
