Marcopolo DL036

Location: Tv. Nestor de Castro, Curitiba, Brazil
Operator of Vehicle: URBS – Urbanização de Curitiba S.A.
Date of Photo: July 18, 2010

On May 27, Jaime Lerner, the former mayor of Curitiba in southern Brazil, passed away at the age of 83.  Lerner was considered to be one of the most influential urban planners.  If you’ve used a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that features level boarding, fare payment prior to boarding, and exclusive right of ways for the buses to travel, that system’s design was influenced by the network in Curitba that Lerner was critical in creating in the 1970s.  

Lerner’s professional training was as an architect and urban planner.  Prior to becoming mayor, Lerner proposed the closing of a major street in the center of Curitiba because of the high pedestrian volumes on that street.  Once appointed as mayor (Brazil was a military dictatorship at the time), Lerner worked to implement the BRT system, as he believed it would be able to improve transportation within the entire city at a larger scale than a more expensive subway system serving fewer areas.  Considering that daily ridership is about 2.3 million people per day in a metropolitan area of 3.4 million people, Lerner was undoubtedly successful in his goals.  By comparison, the Sao Paolo Metro carries about 5.3 million people per day in a city of 12.3 million residents.  BRT systems that take inspiration from Curitiba include the TransMilenio in Bogota, Colombia, Metropolitanio in Lima, Peru, Emerald Express in Eugene, Oregon, the Orange Line in Los Angeles, California, and the Strip and Downtown Express in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Curitiba is also known for its many parks, public forests, and other cultural institutions.  

While traveling in Brazil in 2010, I visited Curitiba, although I did not ride the BRT system.  Given the risks that come with being a solo traveler who did not (and still does not) speak Portuguese, taking a joyride on the transit system in Curitiba was out of the question.  However, I unexpectedly had the opportunity to meet Lerner for a one-on-one conversation lasting about an hour while I was in Curitiba.  I will attempt to share some of the highlights of that discussion as well as a talk I heard him give at the Jerusalem Municipality in 2009 in the next week or so.

For more photos of Curitiba’s Rede Integrada de Transporte, please click here.