Cities on the Move: A World Bank Urban Transport Strategy Review

The urban population in many developing countries continues to grow at more than six percent per year. The number of cities with a population of over 10 million inhabitants is expected to double within a generation. More importantly, within a generation, more than half of the developing world’s population and between a third and one-half of its poor will then reside in cities. Not only will the number of inhabitants in cities continue to increase, but the problems associated with an increasing urban population will be exacerbated. This strategy paper connects the urban and transport strategies with a focus on poverty. It concentrates on the problems of the very poor, not only in relation to income, but also in terms of the broader dimensions of social exclusion. The objectives of this book are to offer a better common understanding of urban transportation problems in developing and transitional economies and to identify an urban transport strategy framework for national and city government.