High-quality bus service in Brazil

Former mayor walks the walk

Jon Boyd, Jul 14, 10.

Curitiba, a metropolitan city in southern Brazil, uses buses in dedicated lanes to provide high-quality service to over two million riders daily, reports CNN:

Curitiba’s Bus Rapid Transit system is one of the most admired public transportation systems on the planet, garnering accolades and spawning spin-off systems in cities like Bogotá and Los Angeles.

Curitiba’s six dedicated fast-lane bus lines traverse the city, carrying 36,000 passengers per hour and 2.3 million overall every day. It’s affordable too—a single fare costs $1.25 and will take you 20 kilometers outside downtown.

In a case of access superceding mobility, Michael Lerner lives across the street from his office, and claims that he rarely drives his car. “My door-to-door trip takes about 40 seconds. It’s a tough commute,” he joked to the CNN reporter. 

Lerner, who led the movement to improve transit while he was mayor, is promoting his ideas in the private sector, as reported in CNN:

Lerner left politics in 2002 and now dedicates his time to his architecture firm, which has worked on urban planning projects for cities including Shanghai in China, Perm in Russia, Mazatlan in Mexico and Luanda in Angola.

He is also designing an electric mini-car, the Dock Dock, that he hopes will clear congested roads and reduce carbon emissions. Lerner says he is proud of his accomplishments, but there’s still much for him and others to do.

“There are three major issues now that are becoming important, not only for cities, but for all mankind: Mobility, sustainability—which is linked to mobility—and social diversity.”

Also, “Curitiba may be the most livable city in the world.”

 

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