The best leaders lead by example: Concluding UITP Latin America Week 2021

The first lady of Costa Rica, four ministers of transport, four mayors from cities like Madrid and Buenos Aires, high-level representatives from UN-HABITAT and the Inter-American Development Bank, and the newly elected president of UITP; the second edition of UITP’s Latin America Week 2021 turned out to be a defining mobility event.

To conclude this unique event, we highlight several key takeaways.

The broad agenda covered discussions on public policies, working with new technologies and planning and operations strategies to bring sustainable improvements to city life. With sessions in Spanish, Portuguese and English, the international event was broadcasted live to 1,200 registered attendees from across the globe.

The event also marked the first UITP event in the tenure of the newly elected president Khalid Alhogail. In opening the event, he emphasised the importance of intensifying collaboration between public and private actors.

• We have a great and unique opportunity to definitively change things for the better, returning urban space to people. Cities and countries must invest in recovery and resilience now for a systemic socio-economic transformation, where public transport and active mobility play a key role in healthy, sustainable and liveable urban environments.
• Stronger collaboration between different public and private actors can accelerate this process. It is essential to count on vision, leadership and ambitious political commitments, such as the ones we’ve heard during the event, as well as stable governance and financing. Only that will allow us to advance towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the solidarity between regions and has emphasised the importance of cooperation at UITP. It has shown that strong public institutions and public transport services are vital to the cohesion of our communities and guaranteeing equal access to services for all.
• The pandemic also highlighted the crucial role of public transport as an enabler to cities´ strategic objectives. They must invest in strong urban mobility to ensure sustained service provision, safe transport for all, and a green, just, and sustainable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
• It’s therefore important to call for fundamental changes, in particular with respect to revenue models for public transport operators that are still dependent on fares paid by passengers. Other stable sources to fund investments and operations should now be considered urgently.
• For that purpose, creating public transport and mobility authorities based on administrative, modal and fare integration is vital for the sustainable development of the metropolitan areas and the balance of the sector.

It was the 67 speakers and moderators who made the Latin America Week 2021 such a great success.

Of course, also a big word of thanks to the sponsors and the diverse exhibition with key industry providers in the sector.

The Latin America Week was truly an experience for the entire urban mobility community.

Read our Policy Brief on integrating land-use and mobility planning

(Available in English & Spanish)

For more updates from UITP’s Latin America office, keep an eye on their page and don’t forget to join us on the next stop of the Digital World Tour!