EMBARQ Brasil helps city of Joinville plan for sustainable urban mobility

EMBARQ Brasil has partnered with Joinville – at 546,000 residents the most populous city in the southern state of Santa Catarina – to help craft the city’s strategy for people-oriented, sustainable mobility. Many of Joinville’s residents already rely on sustainable transport. The latest Origin/Destination survey, conducted in 2010, found that walking accounts for 30% of all trips in Joinville, followed by municipal bus (25%), cars (23%), and bicycles (14%). Known as the "city of bicycles," Joinville has the third-most extensive system of bike lanes of any city in Brazil, just behind the much larger cities of Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba. Still, Joinville is eager to improve other transport alternatives to private vehicles. 

"Our current transport system demands new alternatives. We invited EMBARQ Brasil to assist us. The organization has vast experience and is familiar with the global reality." — Udo Döhler, Mayor of Joinville.

Citizen engagement key to crafting urban mobility plan

The city government, through the Office of Research and Planning for Sustainable Development of Joinville (IPPUJ), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to partner with EMBARQ Brasil in May 2014. Since then, EMBARQ Brasil has hosted two workshops to help Joinville improve sustainable urban mobility in the city.

Joinville Mayor Udo Döhler took part in both workshops and is enthusiastic about the strategic alignment with EMBARQ Brasil. Also participating were key authorities from the municipal government, the entire technical team from IPPUJ, and staff members from the Federal University of Santa Catarina, which has partnered with the city on urban mobility projects.

First, EMBARQ Brasil and Joinville’s leaders held a workshop to advance urban mobility through public participation in the planning process. Following this workshop, the city government oversaw eight public meetings and an online survey in an effort to ensure the plan would be responsive to residents’ needs and better understand the city’s mobility challenges. The Legislative Assembly will vote on Joinville’s urban mobility plan in January 2015.

Second, the most recent “From PAC to Plan” seminar, held on July 16, 2014, helped city leaders qualify their proposed mobility projects for federal funding. Through the Brazilian Growth Acceleration Program (the Programa de Açeleração de Crescimento [PAC]) Brazil’s federal government will provide R$ 400 million (USD 180 million) for urban mobility projects in the state of Santa Catarina, but only after cities above 20,000 residents have developed comprehensive urban mobility plans.

EMBARQ Brasil helped the city of Joinville adjust a project to expand the city’s bus corridors to meet the criteria established by the PAC program and help the city qualify for the funding it needs to expand mobility options. Joinville aims to leverage PAC funding to create new bicycle lanes, pedestrian spaces, and an additional 52 km (about 32 miles) of bus corridors. EMBARQ Brasil is helping Joinville develop the necessary urban mobility plan, as well as use the PAC funding to connect its network of public and non-motorized transport options, creating a city fully accessible via sustainable mass transport, walking, and bicycling.

Joinville city leaders embrace sustainable urban mobility

Mayor Udo Döhler describes the need for improved bus service in Joinville: “Only 25% of the population [takes] buses in Joinville and this percentage should increase. We are enhancing our projects to increase funding from the [federal government] within the context of the National Mobility Law. We want to provide air-conditioned, low-floor buses, deliver more bus lanes, increase comfort, and speed up transport.” 

During the event, Luis Antonio Lindau, President and Director of EMBARQ Brasil, relayed global lessons from cities that have implemented bus rapid transit (BRT) and buses of high levels of service (BHLS), both of which will be included in Joinville’s plan. Further, the EMBARQ Brasil technical team helped Joinville’s 30 technical staff present to define the most urgent challenges and create a timeline for project goals. Specifically, Joinville decided to create a Project Management Unit to manage the planning, financing, construction, environmental analysis, and communications for mobility projects undertaken through the PAC program. 

Going forward, EMBARQ Brasil’s specialists will conduct a road safety inspection to ensure the safety of Joinville’s expanded bus corridors. Furthermore, they will continue working with Joinville to understand residents’ transport needs and refine the city’s mobility plan accordingly. With the help of EMBARQ Brasil, Joinville is expanding its sustainable transport options and creating transport systems that meet the needs of all residents, improving quality of life and building a city for people, not cars.