Quantifying direct public costs and externalities for a just and sustainable urban transport

Abstract

The quest for a just and sustainable urban transport requires a better understanding of public resources use and transport systems impacts. In the global south we know little about city transport spending and how passenger and freight movement affects society. We developed a method to assess the investments of a Brazilian city in different transport systems (direct costs): bus public transport, freight, private motorised transport, cycling and walking. We also estimated the costs of some of the main externalities: air pollution, climate change and road fatalities. Total externalities costs (€225/capita/year) were three times higher than total direct cost (€75/capita/year). Charging externalities costs, often overlooked in public urban policies, represents significant opportunity for more equitable transport. For individual vehicles, full externality cost recoverry would add to €174/car/year. Private motorised transport, accountable for the highest external costs (54 %), received the largest share of city investments (53 %–82 %, representing up to €255/vehicle/year) while walking and cycling got the lowest (6 %–10 %). Spending on public transport during the first year of COVID19 required significant contributions from city budgets and imposed a new trend in the way bus systems are financed in Brazil, that now counts with hundreds of cities subsidising its operation.