ZRST success story
Success Story: Inclusive Climate-Resilient Transport Planning in Zambia
ZRST’s role in the University of York / Stockholm Environment Institute HVT046 project.
The HVT046 project examined how inclusive, climate-resilient transport planning could better reflect the needs of disadvantaged groups, including older people, women, people living with disabilities and other vulnerable road users.
ZRST supported the Zambia component through fieldwork, stakeholder engagement, participatory mapping at Tokyo Way / Kamwala South, local transport-risk documentation and national workshop delivery in Lusaka.
At a glance
A Zambia contribution to a regional transport planning study.
The challenge
Transport planning must reflect the people who use the streets every day.
Transport systems often do not fully reflect the needs of disadvantaged groups. People living with disabilities, older people, women, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users may face barriers that are not visible in conventional transport planning.
Climate change also increases the need for transport infrastructure that is more resilient, accessible and safe. The HVT046 project brought together inclusive planning, climate resilience and road safety to help planners work from local evidence rather than assumption.
Inclusive access
Planning needs to consider the daily experience of people living with disabilities, older people, women, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users.
Climate resilience
Roads, walking routes and access points must be planned with changing weather, drainage and infrastructure resilience in mind.
Local evidence
Participatory tools help planners understand practical barriers that may not appear in standard technical assessments.
The partnership
A research and capacity-building partnership across four countries.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office funded the project through the High Volume Transport Applied Research Programme. University of York / Stockholm Environment Institute led the research, with ZRST serving as Zambia delivery partner.
The wider project covered Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. UNEP Share the Road contributed to the regional partnership and the work connected research, stakeholder engagement and practical capacity building.
ZRST’s role
ZRST’s role in the project.
ZRST supported the Zambia fieldwork and contributed local evidence from Lusaka. Its role focused on field engagement, participatory mapping, stakeholder coordination and workshop support.
Zambia fieldwork
ZRST supported the Zambia field component, including local evidence gathering and engagement with Lusaka transport conditions.
Participatory mapping
ZRST carried out the Tokyo Way / Kamwala South case study using participatory mapping with local residents.
Stakeholder engagement
ZRST engaged public institutions, civil-society bodies and transport stakeholders in Zambia.
National workshop support
ZRST supported the May 2022 Lusaka workshop and presented the Tokyo Way evidence base to government and civil-society participants.
Research and needs assessment
A mixed-method assessment across four African countries.
The project carried out a mixed-method needs assessment across Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. The work included a regional survey, national focus groups and stakeholder interviews to understand how disadvantaged groups were considered in transport planning.
Zambia contribution
ZRST led or supported the Zambia portion of the needs assessment, contributing local evidence on the mobility needs of disadvantaged residents and vulnerable road users.
Published SEI / UK FCDO needs assessment
Inclusive Climate-Resilient Transport in Africa: Assessment of the Needs of Transport Stakeholders Including Disadvantaged Groups.
Tokyo Way / Kamwala South
Participatory mapping helped document local transport risk.
In July 2021, ZRST carried out the Tokyo Way / Kamwala South case study in Lusaka. More than 40 residents took part in rapid participatory mapping, identifying locations where they felt exposed to transport and road safety risks.
The case study documented the conditions faced by pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. The findings contributed to the evidence base used in the wider project guidance.
Location
Tokyo Way / Kamwala South, Lusaka.
Method
Rapid participatory mapping with local residents.
Purpose
To document perceived risk and lived experience around a high-risk urban road environment.
National workshop
Government and civil-society stakeholders joined a shared training process.
In May 2022, the national workshop was held at Radisson Blu Hotel, Lusaka. It trained government and civil-society participants on participatory transport planning tools and used the Tokyo Way / Kamwala South case study as the Zambia evidence base.
Participants included representatives from the Ministry of Transport and Logistics, Road Development Agency, Zambia Police, Lusaka City Council, Zambia Agency for Persons with Disabilities and other bodies. Daniel Mwamba presented the Tokyo Way case study to the workshop.
Timeline
Project timeline.
ZRST joined the project as Zambia partner.
Zambia needs assessment fieldwork was carried out as part of the four-country research process.
The needs assessment publication was released.
ZRST carried out the Tokyo Way / Kamwala South participatory mapping case study in Lusaka.
The national workshop was held in Lusaka with government and civil-society participants.
The wider project guidance framework was published.
Reported outputs and evidence
Research, engagement and capacity-building outputs.
The outputs below should be read as research, engagement and capacity-building contributions, not as claims of physical infrastructure delivery.
Project outputs and contributions
- Zambia contribution to the needs assessment
- Tokyo Way / Kamwala South participatory mapping case study
- National stakeholder workshop
- Training on participatory transport planning tools
- Communique and recommendations to government
- Evidence contribution to regional guidance
Evidence records
- SEI project page
- SEI published needs assessment
- Workshop records
- Tokyo Way case study evidence
- Stakeholder participation records
External evidence
Evidence from external sources.
These external sources document the published needs assessment and the wider inclusive climate-resilient transport project.
| Source | What it confirms | Why it matters | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stockholm Environment Institute publication | Published needs assessment for Inclusive Climate-Resilient Transport in Africa. | Provides the research publication connected to the HVT046 project and lists Daniel Mwamba among the authors. | View publication |
| Stockholm Environment Institute project page | Project background, regional scope and project context for Inclusive Climate-Resilient Transport in Africa. | Provides external confirmation of the project record and wider research context. | View project page |
Why the work matters
Inclusive planning makes transport evidence more useful.
Inclusive transport planning helps ensure that disadvantaged groups are not excluded from decisions that affect daily mobility. Participatory tools help planners understand lived experience, while climate-resilient transport planning links road safety, access and infrastructure resilience.
Through this project, ZRST gained and contributed practical experience in inclusive, climate-resilient transport planning, participatory mapping and stakeholder engagement.
Listening to lived experience
Participatory mapping helps reveal barriers that may not appear in standard road design or transport planning documents.
Connecting inclusion and safety
Road safety planning is stronger when it considers people living with disabilities, older people, women, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users.
Building local capacity
Training and stakeholder engagement help national institutions apply practical tools to transport planning challenges.
Shared credit
A shared research and capacity-building effort.
ZRST acknowledges the University of York, Stockholm Environment Institute, UK FCDO High Volume Transport Applied Research Programme, UNEP Share the Road, Ministry of Transport and Logistics, Lusaka City Council, Road Development Agency, Zambia Police, Zambia Agency for Persons with Disabilities, workshop participants and community participants who contributed to the project.