Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) could generate economic benefits of US$1.4 billion by investing in making its transportation system more resilient in extreme weather conditions, a study released by 189 Siemens and consulting firm Arup today shows.
Siemens and the Arup prepared the study, to show how intelligent infrastructure can assist cities in addressing the increased demand and at the same time offer better protection of their transport networks against extreme weather events.
Calculations based on a review of HCMC's transportation network illustrate that, without intelligent solutions, its traffic congestion is estimated to have a direct cost to the city's economy of approximately US$97 billion between 2015 and 2045. Around 45 percent of the city is less than a meter above sea level, rendering the city and in particular, the transport system highly exposed to flooding, especially during the rainy season. An economic appraisal shows that an integrated management system (control centre) would take only eight years to become net positive in terms of costs and benefits. This could lead to a net benefit of US$1.4 billion over the next 30 years.
"Infrastructure has a long lifespan. Investments made today will determinate the future development of any city tomorrow, especially when it has to cope with both population growth and an increase in severe weather events such as flooding," Michael Stevns, Siemens project leader of the study, said in HCMC.
"When a city relies heavily on individual traffic, the biggest lever is mass transport. Metro lines could be a solution, but they are very expensive and take very long to build. Intelligent traffic management systems can provide a head start for a more comprehensive mobility management approach", said Stephen Cook, associate director of Energy and Climate Change Consulting at Arup.
In Ho Chi Minh City, where public transport only represents 5 percent of total traffic, the number of delay minutes is forecast to increase by 620 per cent over the next 30 years assuming no investments are made in transportation infrastructure, according to Arup analysis. Recent evidence suggest that the frequency, extent and severity of extreme weather events is increasing around the world exposing cities' transport infrastructure to more severe stresses and sudden shock events. According to the World Bank, around 26 per cent of the city's population is currently affected by extreme storm events, but this share could climb to more than 60 percent by 2050. The study shows that intelligent systems that forecast and respond to the impact of damaging weather events on the transportation system can ensure that periods of disruption are minimised and long-term economic sustainability is not undermined.
"Asia's tremendous economic growth is leading to an ever increasing rate of urbanisation with infrastructure playing catch-up. One way out of this dilemma is to make cities' infrastructure more intelligent: ranging from decentralised power generation, smart energy grids to intelligent traffic management systems," said Roland Busch, member of the Siemens managing board, in HCMC. Also, these solutions all come with the added benefit of making cities more resilient to extreme weather events, Busch added.
Siemens and the Arup prepared the study, to show how intelligent infrastructure can assist cities in addressing the increased demand and at the same time offer better protection of their transport networks against extreme weather events.
Calculations based on a review of HCMC's transportation network illustrate that, without intelligent solutions, its traffic congestion is estimated to have a direct cost to the city's economy of approximately US$97 billion between 2015 and 2045. Around 45 percent of the city is less than a meter above sea level, rendering the city and in particular, the transport system highly exposed to flooding, especially during the rainy season. An economic appraisal shows that an integrated management system (control centre) would take only eight years to become net positive in terms of costs and benefits. This could lead to a net benefit of US$1.4 billion over the next 30 years.
"Infrastructure has a long lifespan. Investments made today will determinate the future development of any city tomorrow, especially when it has to cope with both population growth and an increase in severe weather events such as flooding," Michael Stevns, Siemens project leader of the study, said in HCMC.
"When a city relies heavily on individual traffic, the biggest lever is mass transport. Metro lines could be a solution, but they are very expensive and take very long to build. Intelligent traffic management systems can provide a head start for a more comprehensive mobility management approach", said Stephen Cook, associate director of Energy and Climate Change Consulting at Arup.
In Ho Chi Minh City, where public transport only represents 5 percent of total traffic, the number of delay minutes is forecast to increase by 620 per cent over the next 30 years assuming no investments are made in transportation infrastructure, according to Arup analysis. Recent evidence suggest that the frequency, extent and severity of extreme weather events is increasing around the world exposing cities' transport infrastructure to more severe stresses and sudden shock events. According to the World Bank, around 26 per cent of the city's population is currently affected by extreme storm events, but this share could climb to more than 60 percent by 2050. The study shows that intelligent systems that forecast and respond to the impact of damaging weather events on the transportation system can ensure that periods of disruption are minimised and long-term economic sustainability is not undermined.
"Asia's tremendous economic growth is leading to an ever increasing rate of urbanisation with infrastructure playing catch-up. One way out of this dilemma is to make cities' infrastructure more intelligent: ranging from decentralised power generation, smart energy grids to intelligent traffic management systems," said Roland Busch, member of the Siemens managing board, in HCMC. Also, these solutions all come with the added benefit of making cities more resilient to extreme weather events, Busch added.
