Sustainable transportation in an urbanized world : a comparative analysis on the public transportation systems of Hong Kong and Shanghai

Abstract

Road infrastructure is still dominating the most land use in China, the ADB (2008) estimates that by 2020, roads will account for 90 percent of land used by transport infrastructure (6). But China is also expanding their metro and light rail extensively, more than most countries. In 1989, the country only had three metro lines and by 2008, it had reached 36 urban rail transport lines. By examining cities that successfully use private investment for transportation, this paper aims to prove that costly, large-scale investment on public transit is the best option for future development. In essence, this funding method could be applied on a grander, national scale or even to smaller less-populated cities. As in North America, China is still catering to the demand-side of the automobile and should place more emphasis and control over how the country's infrastructure develops to best serve today’s population, as well as future generations. Both of these coastal mega-cities have managed their urban transport system quite differently; Hong Kong is deemed a success story for private owned transport while Shanghai, still considered a transportation role model, struggles to cope with an ever increasing demand and publicly funded infrastructure. By researching and analyzing the three finance methods: public, private or public-private partnerships this paper will compare and contrast these two cities in hopes of determining why Hong Kong has a more successful public transit; whereas Shanghai does not.