Skip to main content

Report: ‘efficient public transport could save US$800 billion’

A new study of transport systems in 35 major cities around the world has revealed that an efficient public transport network can provide these cities with an economic value of up to US$238 billion annually by 2030. Siemens commissioned the study which was presented on Monday alongside the World Cities Summit in Singapore. London-based consulting firm Credo, which conducted The Mobility Opportunity study, said that these economic benefits could reach up to US$800 billion annually if the study is extended
June 5, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
A new study of transport systems in 35 major cities around the world has revealed that an efficient public transport network can provide these cities with an economic value of up to US$238 billion annually by 2030.

189 Siemens commissioned the study which was presented on Monday alongside the World Cities Summit in Singapore. London-based consulting firm Credo, which conducted The Mobility Opportunity study, said that these economic benefits could reach up to US$800 billion annually if the study is extended to all comparably-sized cities globally with a population of around 750,000 and higher.

The report noted that the costs of inefficient transport are influenced by factors such as journey times, crowding and density of the transport networks, which impact a city’s productivity.

While conducting the study, Credo said it compared and assessed the cities based on the leading cities in their category, which enabled them to quantify how much benefit a transport investment could bring to a city.

Of the 35 cities compared in three categories - well-established cities, high density compact cities and emerging cities – the report concludes that the most cost-efficient cities are Copenhagen in Denmark, Singapore and Santiago in Chile respectively.

Singapore was cited in the report as having the leading transportation networks of any high-density city in the world and should be an example to other similar compact municipalities. Singapore’s capacity to meet the demand of increasing urbanisation was credited in the study as a crucial achievement.

The best transportation systems are those in cities that could move people quickly, easily, and comfortably to their destination, noted Roland Busch, CEO of Siemens’s infrastructure and cities sector.

“The leading cities are already achieving this with efficient transport networks that feature modern infrastructure, easy connections across various modes of transportation, and, above all, a clear strategy of how to meet future needs,” explained Busch.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • PTV sets its sights on Smart City solutions
    February 9, 2017
    Making a city smarter not only relies on understand technological opportunities but also human decision-making, as Miller Crockart explains. Cities are about people – a fact that can easily be forgotten when experts talk about roads, healthcare and education as though they are abstract and unconnected monoliths rather than things people use. Understanding how and why people use services is vital for making decisions on how they can be optimised for maximum efficiency across inter-connected networks that for
  • Alvium 1800 U/C-1620: the perfect ITS choice
    September 30, 2021
    Allied Vision has expanded its fast and powerful Alvium camera series
  • Substantial savings from smarter street lighting
    February 25, 2015
    As authorities strive to reduce expenditure and carbon emissions, Colin Sowman looks at some of the smart ways of managing street lighting while containing costs and maintaining safety. Street lighting can account for 40% of an authority’s energy consumption. So, faced with the need to reduce outgoings, some authorities are looking for smart ways of managing street lighting or even turning off swathes of street lights in the small hours. Back in 2008 the E-street Initiative report concluded that authorities
  • UK to tackle US$1.6 billion cost of motorway closures
    April 25, 2012
    A UK government strategy to tackle congestion caused by motorway closures and drive down the £1 billion (US$1.6 billion) annual cost to the economy has been unveiled by Roads Minister Mike Penning, who also announced the launch of a £3 million ($4.87 million) fund for police forces to purchase laser scanning technology to speed up of the investigation process and incident clear up times.