Actual public transportation conditions in Brazilian cities are inadequate, considering service quality, efficiency and reliability. With decreasing investments and service quality, transit patronage has been decreasing, while private transportation use has been increasing, causing congestion, pollution and accidents. The problems were aggravated by the emergence of illegal public transportation by vans. The most important actions to overcome such problems are: the definition of a national policy for urban transport, with objectives, goals and resources, combining efforts from federal, regional and local authorities; the institutional arrangement among land use, transport and traffic policies; the organisation of high quality, regulated and integrated transit networks, under a new regulatory environment; the priority treatment of transit on roadways; the creation of transit alternatives for auto users; the more equitable use of public finds for roadways: the charging of automobile-related externalities; and the promotion of new technologies to improve environmental quality.
Samenvatting