ANGELS AND DEMONS: A TALE OF TWO CITIES (PART TWO)

Bangkok and Los Angeles (LA) are both known as “The City of Angels”, but apart from sharing a name what else do they have in common? In particular, what specific lifestyle problems do they face and what lessons can be learned from their respective approaches to addressing those problems? We looked at some of these issues in the first column in this series on March 18, and we continue our examination today.

Los Angeles has tackled the problem of carbon dioxide emissions head-on through its Green-LA initiative, with a specific focus on using alternative duels in the city’s transport fleet and converting all trucks using the port to meet stringent environmental standards. The conversion is aimed at achieving a staggering 80% reduction in truck diesel emissions.

Additionally, LA is making transport greener by increasing the availability of shuttle-bus services at important transport hubs and converting those shuttle buses to alternative fuel; promoting walking and biking to work; developing regional rail network capacity; and completing a citywide traffic light control and synchronisation system.

So does Thailand’s capital need an equally comprehensive Green Bangkok plan to clean up its act, or is it just wishful thinking to believe such an allencompassing plan would ever get the funding necessary? Indeed, would any of the individual LA initiatives even stand a chance of succeeding in Bangkok, and if not, why not?

Some of what Los Angeles has done could certainly be emulated in Bangkok such as increasing the availability of shuttle-bus services from the airport and other key transport hubs, converting all city-run buses to alternative fuel, promoting and rewarding the use of shared rides for city employees and further developing regional rail network capacity.

However, one of the keys to effectively reducing over-reliance on the car is to have a viable public transport service in place as an alternative. And while the skytrain is a marvel of modernity and efficiency, Bangkok’s often old and polluting bus fleet is certainly not a viable option for city commuters.

However, if the city were to refurbish its entire fleet with modern, air-conditioned, low-emissions buses and introduce dedicated bus lanes on a large scale, things might change. Of course, bus lanes only work if authorities actually enforce the laws, so punitive measures would be necessary during the transition from old to new to ensure motorists get the message.

The most comprehensive of all the LA measures deals with reducing vehicular emissions. And like any good city authority, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has attempted to address this issue over the years with the Bangkok Comprehensive Plan and the Green Fleets Project to promote transport efficiency and pollution reduction.

But while these efforts may have maintained the status quo and may even have prevented deterioration, the reality of little, if any, effective change remains out there on the streets for everyone to see.

The reality is Thailand does not have California’s strict emissions laws to help it contain noxious automobile fumes, and so passing similar legislation in Thailand would be a necessary first step. Without such a legal weapon in hand, the fight against individual polluters will be an uphill struggle before it has even begun.

Of course, passing such legislation is the easy bit — enforcing it is where the real challenges lie, and where the real potential for change is as well. Successfully enforcing legislation requires that two distinct issues be addressed. The first is you need the means. This usually becomes the responsibility of the police or another body with similar enforcement powers. The second requirement is a citizenry that is willing to comply, and here is where the hardest enforcement challenge lies.

Thais have many admirable qualities, but many also seem to retain a happy ability completely to ignore any road-related constraints they believe should not apply to them personally. So the unpleasant truth is if Bangkok’s residents really want to do something about the current transport malaise, they must face the reality that by doing so, they are probably the ones who are initially going to be most inconvenienced.

So perhaps some new approaches are called for, maybe even some radical ones such as closing off some inner-city routes and making them pedestriansonly. Other major cities have attempted to reduce the number of cars on the road in a variety of ways such as reserving a lane for high-occupancy vehicles (HOVs) with three or more passengers or placing restrictions on which cars can use the roads (based on licence plate numbers) on each day of the workweek. Of course, the success of all these approaches relies on adequate surveillance and enforcement.

The bottom line here is Bangkok’s road and vehicle-control technology infrastructure may be just too old and inadequate to support such new approaches. Without a major restructuring of inner-city roads and upgrading of technical surveillance systems, initiatives such as bus lanes, bicycle lanes, HOV lanes and general policing of drivers to ensure compliance with laws are non-starters.

So that leaves two possible scenarios. First, limited attempts at containing the problem are made periodically and a kind of status quo is maintained for the foreseeable future. Second, an overarching master plan is funded and implemented, achieving a revolution in both controlling emissions levels and in driver behaviour.

In the final article in this series, I’ll look at whether the bicycle stands a realistic chance of playing a major role in easing Bangkok’s transport woes.