Camara, APR; (1991) Socio-spatial segregation and the level of service of public transport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

The Brazilian urbanization model has been consolidated in such a way that most cities, and especially the Metropolitan regions, concentrate in their cores not only wealth but also services and the labour market . This results in very high densities. Contrary to this, peripheral areas concentrate poverty and lack of services. This results in lower densities. However these areas are the ones that have been presenting the highest growth rates. What effect does this land use pattern have in the transportation field? What kind of public investments have been made to cope with this spatial configuration of Brazilian urban areas? Is there any relationship between the distribution of the population and the quality of public services, amongst them transport? The aim of this research is to evaluate the public transport system in Rio de Janeiro, taking into account not only the segregation of activities such as housing and labour market but also the stratification of the population in economic and social terms to establish what level of service is provided for people in different income groups. Rio de Janeiro is taken as the best Brazilian example as public investments and market have not only determined where and how one would live, but have also shaped the city in such a way, that good access to facilities has been the privilege of a minority. Transport, as one of the most important public services, will be used as a tool to test the hypothesis that public services are unevenly distributed among different areas in the city and consequently among different population strata. The bus mode was selected for further investigation, as being the main mode of public transport in Rio de Janeiro. A survey was carried out among users within the system in 15 selected routes. The survey findings supported the hypothesis raised initially, and significant differences in attributes such as waiting, walking and in-vehicle times and also travel costs were observed between the core and peripheral householders. One of the greatest contributions of this research was regarding to the bus drivers working conditions. The quality of the services provided, independently from the spatial variable seems to be affected by the very poor working conditions of the crews. Although improvements in the transport system are necessary, they are not sufficient to solve the problem of commuters, unless significant changes also take place in the working conditions of the drivers.

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