EMBARQ, in collaboration with Indore City Transport Services Ltd. (ICTSL), organized a successful technical workshop on Sustainable Transport, at the Fortune Landmark Hotel, in Indore on 29th July 2009. The workshop was funded by ClimateWorks part of CST India’s ongoing efforts to create awareness about integrated urban Bus Services, and had a special focus on Bus Rapid Transit Systems.
The workshop was well attended by senior bureaucrats including the Secretary of Transport for the state of Madhya Pradesh, Collector and Joint Collector for Indore District, along with senior representatives from the Indore Municipal Corporation including the Mayor-in Council, the Speaker, Commissioner and chief executive engineers. They were accompanied by senior members from the Indore Development Authority including the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and senior engineers and planners. Transportation experts from other Indian cities including Delhi, Pune and Ahmedabad along with media persons, members from the civil society, educational institutions and relevant private sector enterprises also participated in the event.
Along with other partners, Dr. Dario Hidalgo, Madhav Pai and Prajna Rao from EMBARQ made presentations on BRT lessons from Guadalajara, Delhi and Ahmedabad and elaborated on initiatives - ongoing and planned by AICTSL with support from EMBARQ - for their BRT services that are expected to open by July 2010.
The presentations were followed by an active multi-stakeholder discussion on the integral components of a good BRT, status of the BRT corridor implementation, adaptation strategies of the BRT to the local urban context, initiatives for NMT, parking and public outreach efforts. The workshop was attended by more than 80 participants and received extensive and positive media coverage from leading local news papers such as Dainik Bhaskar and Hindustan Times.