This report consolidates the findings of the Reinventing Cochin team, as regards the pedestrian audits conducted in the city. It examines two main areas: South Eranakulam and M. G Road.


SOUTH ERANAKULAM

An area dominated by residential houses, shops, a High School and a railway station, it’s undoubtedly a busy vicinity. The bustops and the railway station contribute towards the bulk of the pedestrians who walk to and fro from the stations, use the public transport systems, flag autos and frequent the many shops around it. Thus, being an ideal place to audit, the stretch between Girls High School, Eranakulam and the South Bridge was chosen.

Beginning at the curb near the School, a clear disparity can be seen in the width of the footpath used by the pedestrians. Beginning with a comfortable width of 8.5 ft, it shrinks, mainly because of the presence of a transformer, to a mere 3.25 ft as per the rest of the area. Not only is the area very busy with heavy pedestrian flow, but the footpath before the school has been converted into a makeshift bustop inspite of an actual one existing mere meters away. Therefore, the pavements (or whatever is left of them) are agog with people waiting for the evening bus and venders soliciting them with delectables leaving little place for actual walking.

The actual bustops ahead are put to minimal use, with potential passengers crowding in other areas and thus lie unused and dirty. Mayhap because they take up considerable space, the Corporation has omitted to build pavements in these areas. As one goes forward, one sees, particularly near areas like the Kalyan Chambers, there exist no actual pavements, but mere wobbly concrete slabs over gutters, intercept with gaping holes in the place of the same. The same measure upto a mere 34.5 inches, when the IRA Standards prescribe a minimum of 1.5 meters.

Even more interesting is the second transformer comfortably roosting smack dab in the middle of the pavement near the Madakkapillil lane entrance. The area therefore lacks a pavement, is dirty and forces a pedestrian to take a detour, prompting a hasty motorist to collide with him or her.

Moving forward, past the opposite side of Sadhanam Working Women’s Hostel, down till Valanjambalam Temple, there are no actual pavements, but mere concrete slabs as mentioned before, this time measuring somewhere between 31 to 31.5 inches. A walk down few more meters leads us before Jose Electricals, where the slabs are a significant 9 inches longer, ending at 40 inches, quite a feat considering the surroundings.

Yet again, nearing the gate of the Temple, one sees yet another transformer, with a hole, 38 inches in width and over 100 inches in length, (so what if our pavements don’t conform to international standards? Something does!) like a moat around an ancient fort. This one takes the cup though. It’s dirtier than its predecessors and contributes to the sanctity of the temple with a tastefully situated and over flowing garbage bin. Thus, even if a modal pedestrian wanted to use the pavement, the stench would force him to walk on the road.

Past Valanjambalam’s first gate and on to its second, the distance between the two has no pavements what so ever and the unofficial bustop nearby causes bus drivers to occasionally flatten a hapless pedestrian against the temple wall railings. Maneuvering through here should rightly be an Olympic feat.

Just a glance at the bridge looming ahead will show you that though there are adequate spaces on either side, the Corporation has chosen not to mar the beauty of the place by building pavements. You see large plots of vacant land on either side, which often doubles as car parks and unofficial bustops. There is also gibberish splattering these areas, from clumps of dirt to piles of garbage.


M. G ROAD

A favorite youth hangout, a commercial area and a shopping hub, M. G Road is Cochin’s equalent of downtown New York. Scattered with shops, bakeries and eateries, it attracts more vehicular and pedestrian movement than perhaps any other area around. In shopping areas such as these, IRA recommends that width should be increased by 1 metre, which is treated as “dead width”. Where there are sidewalks around buildings and fences, the dead width can be taken as 0.5 metres. For areas of heavy pedestrian activity such as bus stops, railway stations and recreational areas, the width of sidewalks should be suitably increased to account for accumulation of pedestrians. A considerable difference from the earlier audit is experienced here. There are actual pavements! Red cobble stoned ones at that. The sad part is the landscaping that the shopkeepers around have chosen to employ. While there is often a clear, distinguishable and mostly unbroken pavement, there are some anomalies to the same.

From Joy Alukkas to Jose Alukkas, the pavements range from somewhere between 4.10 to 5 meters. There are minor interruptions here and there, such as the odd pole or railing or the annoying half built transformer, but at least there is adequate place for pedestrians who both wish to walk and who wish to gawk and window shop. Moving forward, the petrol pump adjacent to the UniverCel showroom has a huge area which allows for easy movements of vehicles and pedestrians but ends with an uphill climb before a huge, gaping, clogged and open outlet. It takes one a while to realize that the complicated system of pipes and taps nestled within, actually happens to be an integral part of the city’s water supply channels, though it does baffle one as to what its doing above ground or why it is not sealed. Thankfully, a slight wall around it saves the absent minded a dunk or a tumble.

Areas around Shenoy’s figure pavements 6 ft in length while Twinkle sports clearly broken ones, the same continuing a trend till K. B Varkey & V. S Builders. Jacobs DD Mall sports deplorable pavements, not because of the lack of space, but the lack of public spirit. These open spaces are used by food venders to set up temporary stalls as the evening arrives. Nearing Lens & Frames, the pavements widen, while the area between Woodlands till the opposite side of My Kingdom have pavements 34 inches long. Certain areas that have footpaths have the same opened and a pile of dirt from within, deposited on the sidewalks. Josco Jwellers are a testament to the landscaping skills of shopkeepers. Here, the public pavements have clearly been encroached by them by making way for a car park for their customers.

The opposite side of M. G Road, sporting shops such as Punjabi Libas is clearly the very same situation, though the width of the pavement is slightly lesser than that on the other side. The entire situation of M. G Road pavements is that it’s slightly more encouraging a scenario than other downtown areas. The pavements are in a relatively better condition, except for an occasional break. Its maintenance however, is attributed more to the shopkeeper’s commercial sense kicking in than the Corporation’s sense of duty. The singularly major complaint that one would register is that the pavements are not of even length and decrease and increase according to the shop it houses. And certain cases see a shopper surreptitiously increase his shop size by encroaching the pavements, but this is not always the case.


CONCLUSION

Missing sidewalks or gaps, abrupt changes in sidewalk width, obstructions on sidewalks, and frequent, abrupt changes in direction are all seen as signs of a faulty walkway. These standards, most pavements in Cochin, nay Kerala conform to. Reinventing Cochin Team firmly believes that this is one infrastructure that is in dire need of revamping. It is to make a mockery of ourselves to let the Corporation delude us into thinking that pavements are unimportant. We have people campaigning to make pavements and streets disabled-people friendly. When it is hardy safe for an able man to cross, one shudders to think of the plight of our less fortunate brethren. Besides which, we believe a good makeover can contribute towards the scenic beauty of the city making it a more attractive and lucrative place for tourism, industrial activity, and commerce etc.

Urban Transport

Urban transport system faces the challenges at the rapid urbanisation process happning in Indian context. Various committees and recommendations are in the air to improve the system. Rather than looking at an uniform solution in every cities, we need to study the various elements influencing the transport system in these cities. Urban transport system needs to be looked at with an utmost care. 

This article appeared in Times of India draws to a very relevant argument to the concerns about the policy initiative in urban transport system.

Under the national action plan on climate change being prepared by the urban development ministry, the mission on sustainable habitat has made  several recommendations in order to check the growth of private vehicles in Indian cities and boost public transport. The goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles which, the mission warns, could increase by 580 per cent by 2035. But while the motive behind the proposal is laudable, pushing public transport as an alternative to private transport will be difficult when there is abysmally poor public transport in most Indian cities. 

Sure, the sheer volume of new vehicles being added to roads every day needs to be checked. The growth of registered vehicles has been four times the rate of growth of the population in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Chennai. Oil consumption by vehicles is slated to increase by 600 per cent in the same period. That's why the government's proposals concentrate on making it more expensive for people to own and drive cars. To that end, the plan seeks to impose a congestion charge on vehicles for entry into busy areas. There is also a proposal to make the parking fee reflect the cost of land, while bringing in differential parking rates. 

But before penalising people for turning to private vehicles, the government must provide a clean, efficient and well-connected public transport system, which would include local trains, the metro and buses. Most of the ideas proposed by the mission are hardly revolutionary, though some, such as the one requiring prospective car buyers to demonstrate ownership of a parking spot before purchase, appear unenforceable. Indeed, measures like congestion tax and differential parking charges have been implemented with some success in cities such as London and Singapore. However, both those cities had well-developed and efficient public transport systems in place before they charged people for driving cars to get to work. 

The recommendations are typical of urban planning in this country, which has tended to be myopic. As it is, these measures will disrupt public life far more than they will solve traffic blues. If implemented now, these measures will only force people to spend more on purchasing and running a private vehicle. It is unlikely to discourage people from buying cars. Until public transport systems in cities are improved, it is unlikely that there will be a slowdown in the growth of private vehicles. Vehicular emissions are a cause for concern in the fight against climate change. But the government cannot seriously begin to reduce emissions without first putting the infrastructure in place to make it possible for people to give up their cars.

Centre for Public Policy Research

Invites internship in the following categories under ‘Reinventing Cochin’ Project initiated by the Centre

Eligibility: Graduate students to retired civil servants

Duration: Two weeks to two months

Time:  commitment of 30 working hours to 150 working hours.

Selection: based on the interview

 

Selected areas of research for internship in Reinventing Cochin project

 

Decentralization - Financial:

• Autonomy of financial resources
• Can local government decide on the use of local resources ?
• Predictability of inter-governmental transfer
• Principles of financial devolution
• Level of adoption of the budget
• Sources of local government funding ((taxes,user charges, borrowing, central government, international aid)
• Can local government raise resources from capital markets without approval of from higher levels of government?
• Percent of funds devolved from higher levels of government

Decentralization - Political:

• Dismissal of mayors, councilors and officials
• Progress of deciding political agenda
• Legislation on de-centralisation (yes/no)
• Number of gender equity oriented initiatives undertaken by local organisation or institutions
• Percentage of elected and nominated members by sex/ethnic group
• Control by higher level of government
• Access to government positions by all groups

Local government:

• Process of selecting mayor
• Regulatory framework that governs promotion of civil servants
• Career prospects of civil servants
• Pay scale of civil servants
• Tacit knowledge about the power structure

Planning and predictability:

• Openness of procedures for contracts/tenders for municipal services
• Appointments by higher government
• Annual budgeting
• Percent recurrent resources for Pvt Sector/CBO
• who supplies and regulates various services
• independent decisions, regulation/taxes, auditing, removal from office
• Sources of income
• Transparency of local taxation
• Consistency/regularity of local mayor election

Responsiveness:

• Percentage of population served
• Access of public to stages of policy cycle ( planning, budgeting, monitoring, etc) delegation of public service
• Integration of planning and budgeting
• No of public hearings and participants from different income/ethnic groups
• Are data collected and used by gender and district
• Existence of conflict mediation at local level (budgeted)

Empowerment:

• Existing participatory processes
• Group equity in participatory planning and decision making
• Equal access to education and information
• Existence or not of information on differential situation and needs of women and men
• Legal entitlement to different assets to all categories of people
• Self determination of groups in relation to resource management
• Civil freedoms - press, association, justice
• Social group and watch dog for programme implementation
• Number of CBO’s and specific organisations  addressing gender issues
• Access to basic needs

Effectiveness:

• Consumer satisfaction ( survey/complaints)
• Capacity for delivery of services ( including spatial coverage)
• Income/expenditure of local govt/capita
• Legislated local government functions
• Targets, programme, financial
• Economic development ( city Product)
• Environmental quality

Freedom, justice, fairness and equity ( concentrated on equity first):

• Equity in tax system
• Incorporation of excluded groups in the consultation process
• Resource allocation to services benefiting the poor/ the rich
• Access to basic services for disadvantaged groups Eg spatial distribution of services
• Quintile distribution of city product
• Ratio of price of water in formal informal settlements
• Existence of public hearings
• Existence of local media
• Resource allocation towards formal/informal  settlement
• Rental; to income ratio in formal and informal settlement

Accountability and transparency:

• Fairness in enforcing laws
• Clarity of procedures and regulations and responsibilities
• Existence of sanction, performance standards and disclosure laws
• Codes of conduct for professional associations

Forward Looking:

• Social development plan
• Vision/mission statements
• Forward/strategic Plans
• Communication strategy
• Gender perspective
• Revenue growth ( total and own)
• Funds known in advance
• Setting budgets/targets
• Existence of planning department

Participation:

• Role of  key groups in planning , decision making, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
• Freedom of media and existence of local media
• Percentage of people voting by sex and social groups
• Process of public discussion on key issues
• Use of referendum on key issues
• Right of establishing association

Private sector:

• Extent of civil society organization ( monitoring )
• Predictability of enforcement
• Integrity of auditing and monitoring
• Existence of enabling city legislative environment
• Predictability of institutional change
• Credibility of rules
• Existence of an official admin structure

Security:

• Percentage of unsafe city areas-crime rates (murder, rape)
• Police corruption- feeling of safety
• Efficiency
• Per capita revenue
• Cost of various services
• Percentage economic Growth
• Recycling/re-treatment/sustainability
• Percentage on salaries
• Employees per delivery service
• General administration share
• Number of local government employees/ 1000 population

Civil society:

• Resource requirements to organised groups
• Status of local leadership ( formal, informal, legitimate, non legitimate, respected, non respected, independent
• Existence of emergency laws against public meetings, tradition of public action
• No of NGO’s
• No of procedures need e to register NGO’s

Planning and management:

• Functional responsibilities for service provision (sewerage, water, education, health, social services, green space etc)
• Possibility that the mayor is good!!!!

Top 12 Urban Governance issues/indicators: 
 

1. Consumer satisfaction (survey/complaints)  2. Openness of procedures for contracts/tenders for municipal services  3. Equity in tax system  4. Sources of local government funding ((taxes,user charges, borrowing, central government, international aid)  5. Percentage of population served by services  6. Access of public to stages of policy cycle  7. Fairness in enforcing laws  8. Incorporation of excluded groups in the consultation process  9. Clarity of procedures and regulations and responsibilities  10. Existing participatory processes  11. Freedom of media and existence of local media  12. Autonomy of financial resources

 

Selected candidates will be given training and quality benchmarked articles will be published in reinventing cochin website and also in the local dailies.

 

Interested candidates can forward your resume to shobha@cppr.in