Sustainable Urban Mobility Planning in Secondary Towns in Kenya

#SDGAction42820

Description

Intro

UN-Habitat is promoting a people-oriented approach to mobility that focuses on improving access, safety and convenience for people. In Kenya, like in many cities in Africa transport planning is biased towards the movement of motorised vehicles despite the high proportion of non-motorised trips especially walking. For instance, trips by walking are estimated at 47% in Nairobi. A Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) was developed for Ruiru, a rapidly growing town in Nairobi Metropolitan Area. SUMP is a strategic plan designed to satisfy the mobility needs of people and businesses in cities and their surroundings for a better quality of life.

Objective of the practice

The objective of the SUMP was to identify how far the needs of existing and potential transport users are being met, and to close any gap between what is provided and what is needed.The aim was to demonstrate how fast-urbanizing smaller towns in the vicinity of larger cities can benefit from a better planned approach to improve accessibility of people to goods, services, places of employment, amenities and overall urban opportunities. A key feature of SUMP is that it is a participatory and consensus driven approach thus developed in participation with all stakeholders including citizens with an emphasis on marginalized and vulnerable groups, businesses, governments (county and national), transport service providers; road construction and maintenance agencies. 
 
A SUMP covers all modes and forms of transport in the entire urban setting, including public and private, passenger and freight, motorised and non-motorised, moving and parking. SUMP contributes to the SDGs by prioritising movement of people and goods within an urban region in a way that delivers the environmental, economic and social dimensions of sustainability: 
• SUMP ensures that all citizens of all classes, any social status and income level are offered transport options that enable access to key destinations 
and services by shifting towards more of a balance between all modes of transport; 
• Sump improves safety and security by catering for vulnerable road users such as disabled people, elderly, pedestrians and cyclists who are often 
marginalised in road transport improvement projects; and 
• SUMP contribute to environmental sustainability by prioritising public transport, walking and cycling which reduces air and noise pollution, 
greenhouse gas emissions and energy among key objectives.

Partners

The County Government of Kiambu was the immediate beneficiary and responsible to finance and implement the SUMP through various departments such as the engineering and planning. Stakeholders included the Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority; National Ministry of Transport; Kenya Urban Roads Authority; Kenya National Highways Authority; and National and Transport Safety Authority; business community and other civic organisations. UN-Habitat partnered with the University of Nairobi's Institute for Development Policy to support the county government to develop the SUMP. With support of Institute for Transportation and Development Policy training on complete street designing was conducted with the county government staff.

Implementation of the Project/Activity

The SUMP planning process followed the following progressive key steps- Launching of SUMP process; Defining the scope of the plan; Situation analysis and scoping of main issues; clarifying the development and coordination process including integration with other agencies; Developing and adopting SUMP proposals (common vision with stakeholders); Setting priorities and measurable targets and interventions; Agree on budget allocation or partnerships; Building implementation monitoring and evaluation framework; Ensure proper communication with stakeholders; and Learn the lessons. The SUMP Planning Process is attached.

The County Government of Kiambu planners, engineers and decision makers were trained to undertake SUMP which is a participatory process. An immediate action after adoption of SUMP (Step 5) proposals was for the County Government to establish a committee to take up subsequent activities such as building implementation monitoring and evaluation framework of the SUMP.

Results/Outputs/Impacts

The scope of the proposed Ruiru SUMP is non-motorised transport (walking and cycling planning) integrated with other modes and thus creating an effective model for the town. Two key maps were developed, the 'Problem Map Analysis' that visualises the mobility challenges at different locations such as undefined crossing levels and cyclist and vehicular conflict. The 'Action Plans and Proposals' map shows on-ground infrastructure modifications that the County Government can implement to improve access, safety and convenience for citizens. The SUMP proposals were presented to the Cabinet and received endorsement with the recommendation that the plan be incorporated in the 2017-2018 County fiscal paper. The "Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) for Ruiru Town, Kenya 2017: Ruiru on the Move- Promoting Walking and Cycling” details the process and steps followed in developing a SUMP for Ruiru town in Kenya that can be adapted in other cities. The SUMP focuses on challenges and interventions for improving the walking and cycling environment. The report is available on the link https://unhabitat.org/sustainable-urban-mobility-plan-sump-for-ruiru-ke…

Building on the SUMP work and with the objective of improving safety and promoting equitable access for all road users, UN-Habitat supported the County Government of Kiambu to develop improved street designs in central Ruiru where there is a hive of transport activities. The objective of this was to provide better facilities for walking, cycling, and public transport. A holistic approach to street design, incorporating mobility elements such as footpaths, cycle tracks, carriageways as well as additional elements such as trees, bus stops, street furniture and organised vending spaces in an integrated design was followed. The street designs were based on public participation and scientific assessment of needs and behaviour of street users. Lessons from the street design activities in Ruiru town as well as from a similar initiative in Kiambu town informed a publication “Streets for Walking and Cycling: Designing for Safety, Accessibility and Comfort in African Cities 2018”. The publication highlights good practices and street design techniques for improving universal access. Emphasis is on making streets safe, accessible and comfortable for pedestrians and cyclists. This publication has been disseminated at various workshops and conferences. The publication is available on https://unhabitat.org/streets-for-walking-cycling-designing-for-safety-…

Enabling factors and constraints

Participation and consensus of various stakeholders was at the center for the different steps of the SUMP planning process. This increased ownership of the process and the plan. Limited human capacity to plan and implement SUMP was one of the key challenges in a rapidly urbanising town such as Ruiru. To enhance capacity of county government planners, engineers and decision makers, capacity building such as participatory street designing exercises where undertaken. This involved field visits to identify on-the-ground challenges and developing proposals to enhance mobility. Prioritizing budgetary allocation to support safer streets with walking and bicycle integrated with public transport is another way to promote SUMP implementation.

Sustainability and replicability

To facilitate scale the interventions pursued in Ruiru town across the entire county, UN-Habitat also supported the preparation of a Transport Policy for the County. The Policy has been submitted to the new Kiambu County administration and is currently under review. The policy calls for greater investment in sustainable transport modes. Included in the policy document are street design guidelines to facilitate design of high-quality facilities for non-motorised transport (NMT) and public transport users. Constant communication with the new county administration is ongoing to lobby for adoption of the policy document by the County Cabinet.

Conclusions

The SUMP introduced a new approach of local consultations that are well informed by good practices in other cities. The process, initiated training and capacity building for staff in Kiambu County and promoted collaboration between the local and national authorities. The Ruiru SUMP demonstrated how fast growing urban settlements facing numerous mobility challenges can benefit from a participatory policy approach to sustainable urban mobility. On-ground interventions such as dedicated pedestrian ways and cycling lanes, improved pedestrian crossings and improved intersections can greatly enhance access and mobility, creating equitable access for all road users. To widely disseminate the SUMP as an effective planning and policy tool a national consultative meeting that was attended by stakeholders and policy makers from different counties of Kenya was conducted in March 2018 before closure of the project.

Other sources of information

"Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) for Ruiru Town, Kenya 2017: Ruiru on the Move- Promoting Walking and Cycling” details the process and steps followed in developing a Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) for Ruiru town in Kenya that can be adapted in other cities. The SUMP focuses on challenges and interventions for improving the walking and cycling environment. The report is available on the link https://unhabitat.org/sustainable-urban-mobility-plan-sump-for-ruiru-ke…

“Streets for Walking and Cycling: Designing for Safety, Accessibility and Comfort in African Cities 2018”. The publication highlights good practices and street design techniques for improving universal access. Emphasis is on making streets safe, accessible and comfortable for pedestrians and cyclists. This publication has been disseminated at various workshops and conferences. The publication is available on https://unhabitat.org/streets-for-walking-cycling-designing-for-safety-…

SDGS & Targets