Transport: Decisions of the GA and CSD

Decision made as part of the Plan of Implementation at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, 
26 August - 4 September 2002 

Chapter III: Changing Unsustainable Patterns of Consumption and Production

21. Promote an integrated approach to policy-making at the national, regional and local levels for transport services and systems to promote sustainable development, including policies and planning for land use, infrastructure, public transport systems and goods delivery networks, with a view to providing safe, affordable and efficient transportation, increasing energy efficiency, reducing pollution, congestion and adverse health effects and limiting urban sprawl, taking into account national priorities and circumstances. This would include actions at all levels to:

(a) Implement transport strategies for sustainable development, reflecting specific regional, national and local conditions, to improve the affordability, efficiency and convenience of transportation as well as urban air quality and health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including through the development of better vehicle technologies that are more environmentally sound, affordable and socially acceptable;

(b) Promote investment and partnerships for the development of sustainable, energy efficient multi-modal transportation systems, including public mass transportation systems and better transportation systems in rural areas, with technical and financial assistance for developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

Chapter VI: Health and Sustainable Development

56. Reduce respiratory diseases and other health impacts resulting from air pollution, with particular attention to women and children, by:

(a) Strengthening regional and national programmes, including through public-private partnerships, with technical and financial assistance to developing countries;

(b) Supporting the phasing out of lead in gasoline; 

(c) Strengthening and supporting efforts for the reduction of emissions through the use of cleaner fuels and modern pollution control techniques;

(d) Assisting developing countries in providing affordable energy to rural communities, particularly to reduce dependence on traditional fuel sources for cooking and heating, which affect the health of women and children.

 

United Nations General Assembly, 19th Special Session
New York, 23-27 June 1997

Resolution Adopted By The General Assembly for the Programme for the Further Implementation of 
Agenda 21

Transport

47. The transport sector and mobility in general have an essential and positive role to play in economic and social development, and transportation needs will undoubtedly increase. Over the next twenty years, transportation is expected to be the major driving force behind a growing world demand for energy. The transport sector is the largest end-user of energy in developed countries and the fastest growing one in most developing countries. Current patterns of transportation with their dominant patterns of energy use are not sustainable and on the basis of present trends may compound the environmental problems the world is facing and the health impacts referred to in paragraph 31 above. There is a need for:

(a) The promotion of integrated transport policies that consider alternative approaches to meeting commercial and private mobility needs and improve performance in the transport sector at the national, regional and global levels, and particularly a need to encourage international cooperation in the transfer of environmentally sound technologies in the transport sector and implementation of appropriate training programmes in accordance with national programmes and priorities;

(b) The integration of land-use and urban, peri-urban and rural transport planning, taking into account the need to protect ecosystems;

(c) The adoption and promotion, as appropriate, of measures to mitigate the negative impact of transportation on the environment, including measures to improve efficiency in the transportation sector;

(d) The use of a broad spectrum of policy instruments to improve energy efficiency and efficiency standards in transportation and related sectors;

(e) The continuation of studies in the appropriate forums, including the International Civil Aviation Organization, on the use of economic instruments for the mitigation of the negative environmental impact of aviation in the context of sustainable development;

(f) Accelerating the phasing-out of the use of leaded gasoline as soon as possible, in pursuit of the objectives of reducing the severe health impacts of human exposure to lead. In this regard, technological and economic assistance should continue to be provided to developing countries in order to enable them to make such a transition;

(g) The promotion of voluntary guidelines for environmentally friendly transport, and actions for reducing vehicle emissions of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and volatile organic compounds, as soon as possible;

(h) Partnerships at the national level, involving Governments, local authorities, non-governmental organizations and the private sector, for strengthening transport infrastructures and developing innovative mass transport schemes.