According to the Movilidad Urbana en América Latina(Urban
Mobility in Latin America) report, some of the issues that must be
discussed by the 15 most important cities in Latin America are,
offering higher quality at a lower cost per trip, promoting
regulations, reducing contamination, and providing more safety.
Following is a diagnostic of the challenges faced in order to
improve urban mobility:
- Widen access :From a geographic and
demographic point of view, the metropolitan areas have populations
of several million people. Low incomes and the configuration of
urban spaces limit access to the opportunities offered by the city
for the majority of people.
- Regulations: The public transportation
services usually have a fragmented regulation in multiple
governmental levels, making coordination difficult in order to
guarantee efficiency and quality. Low salaries limit users to pay
for the costs of mobility. This is linked to the existence of
low-quality systems, with reduced rates, and discounts for
different types of users.
- Road safety: The quality of public
transportation is poor. Travelling times and costs are high.
Insecure roads affect the most vulnerable, that is,
pedestrians.
- Decrease contamination: The level of
contaminating emissions is very high in many cities, which is
detrimental for public health. Even though the levels of traffic
congestion have not been quantified, they are recognized as being
very high, especially in the largest areas.