Jérôme Chenal

A new approach to spatial analysis of motorcycle taxis activities – the case of Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Abstract Motorcycle taxis operate in a non-regulated, uncontrolled environment, raising public health, environmental and economic issues. Consideration of such issues requires an in-depth understanding of motorcycle taxis’ organizational and operational features. Urban sprawl, a difficult economic context and demographic pressure have led to an increase in motorcycle taxi activities in the Republic of Haiti. This study presents a novel approach to analyzing informal modes of transport using qualitative data from semi-directive interviews and observations with a spatial analysis of motorcycle taxi activities by GPS tracking. The analysis is comprised of three phases. First, a suitable tracking device and fixing method were tested and selected. In the second, 12 drivers were equipped with charged devices on a daily basis. The interviews were conducted simultaneously. Finally, we draw four main results using the Haversine method and calculating the inactivity rate. Given a median action range of <3 km, the lack of peak-hours observed, an inactivity rate of more than 50% and the low profitability of the current structure, the activity’s economic potential is not optimized under the current system. The poor distribution of stands across the territory and large number of drivers results in the overall inefficiency of the system.

A spatial analysis of motorcycle taxis activities for environmental planning – the case of Port-au-Prince, Haiti

We report a novel method for the spatial analysis of informal transport activities for future environmental planning. It uses a combination of spatial data gathered with GPS devices and semi-formal interviews. We show that the current configuration of the system is not optimized. It leads to a greater concentration of motorcycle taxis activities in denser urban areas, emitting high levels of noise and air pollution. Recommendations include decentralizing part of the activity and closer monitoring of the number of pilots

Digital tools and citizen participation: Towards sustainable and responsive urban planning

The smart city concept has existed for decades now. It was presented as a response to help cities cope with challenges they were facing such as rapid urbanization, climate change, resource depletion, and sustainability. Based mainly on sensors, flow optimization and algorithms, this model has revealed its limits. In smart city endeavors, citizens are seldom included in the planning process, although they hold a central position to produce and share useful knowledge on how they live and use the city. Technology has already been exploited to enhance city management, but it is still widely underused in urban planning even though it holds great promise. It has the potential to create tools that improve interaction between urban planners and city dwellers, which is a key aspect for more sustainable and responsive planning. This study explores how digital technologies can be harnessed to generate new ways of involving citizens in city planning, using the data they produce. Digital tools are changing the whole practice of urban planning by adding a non-expert but practiced knowledge layer in the planning process towards more sustainable cities.

Lessons Learned from Case Studies

To summarize, it appears, from the 15 cases studied, that a certain number of tell-tale traits can be distinguished beyond the specificities of each case.

Tentative Classification of Various Slum Types

This chapter proposes a typology of slums based on spatial indicators at two scales: the neighbourhood scale and the urban scale. By classifying, we are able to understand neighbourhoods based on their urban location (central, peripheral, etc.) and the built environment it generates. This typology breaks with conventional slum definitions, mainly in terms of access to urban public services and quality of life.

Learning from the Slums, Learning for the Slums

Slums may clash with a vision of a modern city. However, bearing in mind that on a global scale, around one billion dwellers live in such poor settlements, the slum is an emblematic issue of contemporary urbanization. We therefore need to review the causes and effects of this phenomenon. The problem of slum cannot be solved on its own, taken out of its spatial and social context. This approach requires theoretical analysis to demonstrate that the slum is not only defined through deficiencies, but also as a direct outcome of urban spatial and social practices. We will take into account a diversity of urban situations and the considerable differences in the status of slums in various urban decision-making systems.

Slums: Note for an Urban Theory

Regarding the critique of urbanism and sociology of the fragmented city, slum theory aims at understanding in what ways slums reflect the segregated city and dominant urban order, when its inhabitants generally have neither the opportunity nor the means to resist this order, other than by increasing the informality of their urban integration.

From the Field to the Theory

Based on the typology developed previously, this chapter will demonstrate how it is possible to create solutions that take into account differences between slums. Multiple possibilities exist for doing so. The typology serves to highlight similarities and differences between settlements, so as to distinguish the characteristics of each slum and its place in the urban environment. For each case study differences appear at several levels (land use, urban housing, etc.), which makes proposing a single solution for all settlements impossible, forcing us to define specific configurations that can be adapted to the specificities of each slum.

Slums and Precarity in Developing Countries

Today, urbanisation is a global process that characterises the rapid development of a majority of emerging and developing countries, giving rise to important social, spatial and economic changes. In such a context, urban issues systematically couple with rural migration phenomena and increasing numbers of poor people living in precarious conditions, engendering urban informality (housing conditions, employment, etc.) and environmental contamination (water, soil, air and waste). The result is growing insecurity and vulnerability among the disadvantaged.