Final conference english materials

“Sustainable development is impossible without sustainable transport”

At the final conference of the UNDP-GEF “City of Almaty sustainable transport”, held on the 16-17^th of  November 2017 in Almaty, the mayor of the city, Bauyrzhan Baibek, noted that “sustainable development is impossible without sustainable transport” because “the effectiveness of the transport system affects the quality and the security of our lives and the lives of our relatives”.

The conference “Sustainable transport of Almaty city. Transferring experience. Moving forward.” was the final event of the CAST project where were made the conclusions on the 6 years project activities, shared the experience and given the recommendations to the city for the further development of urban mobility. At the conference were raised such questions as the implementation of national policies in the field of urban mobility, the enhancing of the public transport attractiveness and reliability, the  importance of streets and the question of cycling and walking promotion. Moreover, in the framework of the conference were organized a training on calculations of the GHG emissions from transport projects, an exhibition on low-carbon development (Futurama Redux) and a round-table on E-cars promotion.

The conference was attended by the representatives of the Akimat of Almaty city, of the UNDP, of the Ministry for Investments and Development RK, of the Ministry of Energy RK, of the EBRD and by the international and local specialists from the field of transport and urban planning.

The mayor of Almaty city, Bauyrzhan Baibek, underscored the importance of the CAST project and its inestimable contribution to the south capital’s development. According to him, “if a city stops being attractive for young active and smart people, it also stops its development. Thus, the question of sustainable transport is ultra-important for us”.

Mister Baibek also noticed that thanks to the implementation of the electronic payment system “Onay”, the field of public transport was taken out of the shadows, its potential was revealed. We stopped perceiving it as loss-making. The private organizations started to invest in the public transport making it more attractive. Moreover, the Deputy Resident Representative of the UNDP Kazakhstan, Ms. Munkhtuya Altangerel, highlighted that during 6 year of the CAST project existence the mentality of the Almaty citizens has considerably changed, “the intensity of personal transport use decreased from 50% to 41% in favor of the public transport, of the bicycles and of the walking”.

Among the project’s achievements discussed at the conference the most important was the question of the ITMS implementation. Its main goal is to integrate a complex approach to the transport planning for the period until 2023. As far as the plans in the field of urban planning for the future (after the closure of the CAST project) are concerned,  during the conference were discussed the questions of the BRT and LRT development.

The LRT project was presented by Gani Tazhiyev, Executive Director of LRT Project Department,

“Almatyelectrotrans” LLP. “Due to the implementation of the LRT and BRT projects the direct GHG emissions will decrease by 500 thousands tons, indirect emissions – by 1 mln tons”, - noted Ms. Altangerel.

In its turn, the presentation of the BRT project at the conference was made by Daniyar Nadyrkhanov, Head

of Division, Public Transport Department of Almaty city. He mentioned the contribution made by the UNDP to the preparation of this project and reported that by implementation of the bus corridor the average passenger flow is supposed to increase from 114 thousands to 147 thousands.

In total, during 6 years of the “City of Almaty sustainable transport” project existence, were organized 19 conferences and seminars, attended by over 800 representatives of the authorities, project institutions, transport and construction companies, and 15 trainings for over 200 professionals. Various events on bike and pedestrian promotion were organized in 16 Kazakh cities, 443 bicycles were given to the Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools (NIS) and also social campaigns on the sustainable transport promotion were held throughout the city. Moreover, 3 reports were published: energy energy efficiency in transport sector of the, report on the accessibility for persons with reduced mobility and policy review of the development of the public transport sector in Kazakhstan.

In other words, the UNDP-GEF project “City of Almaty sustainable transport” ceases its activity, however, it leaves an enormous stock of knowledge for its successors in the field of sustainable mobility development as well on the city-level as on the national one. It is essential to remember that the development of sustainable mobility requires not only a local approach but also an implementation of a national policy.

The south capital, Almaty city, should become a “catalyst” (Munkhtuya Altangerel) for other Kazakh cities in the promotion of sustainable mobility development. So, it was proposed to nominate Almaty for the ITDP sustainable mobility award. This prize is usually awarded to the cities with the highest achievements in the sustainable mobility promotion. The winner organizes the international summit “Mobilize” where over 200 specialists in the field of transport and urban planning are gathered. In total, this idea was supported as well by the public organizations as by the Akimat of the Almaty city because it will contribute to the further promotion of the sustainable mobility reforms.  

Citing the Deputy Resident Representative of the UNDP Kazakhstan, Ms Munkhtuya Altangerel: “In its program activity the UNDP focuses its efforts on the inclusive and complex development of the big and small Kazakh cities”. Thus, with the closure of the CAST project, the activities on the Kazakh cities development do not stop – “the project on transport passes the baton to the cities low-carbon development and those organizations which are interested in the pursuing of the activities in this field”.

“We are hoping that one day Kazakh cities will be included in the list of the best cities of the world in terms of living conditions”, - Munkhtuya Altangerel.

The materials available in English can be downloaded below. The brochure for the Futurama Redux exhibition organized by the "Smarter than car" organization can also be downloaded below (Attention! The brochure is split into 2 part due to its size)