Call for Papers: Trialog – Journal for Planning and Building in the Third World – No. 110 Mobility and Urbanization

Edited by: Dirk Heinrichs and Wolfgang Scholz

Urban mobility has in recent years gained importance as a topic on the agenda of urban research and planning practice across all world regions. Rapid urbanization continues to confront cities with a dramatic rise in the demand for mobility of people and in the volume of goods transport within and between cities. In addition, the general trend towards increasing urban motorized individual travel adds tremendous pressure on existing transport infrastructures. In combination, these trends have negative impact on social aspects like accessibility or travel time. They also generate environmental impacts like local air pollution and noise, and contribute significantly to global emissions and thereby to climate change.

To confront and to mitigate negative social and environmental effects and to improve mobility options for urban residents, local authorities as well as a private transport providers have over the past decade initiated ‘innovative’ transport projects and strategies. Such initiatives include bus rapid transit schemes, bike rental schemes, or even the introduction of urban cable cars. Aside from using new technologies, they often introduce new modes of implementation and operation.

The Trialog issue 110 invites contributions that present and analyse responses and ‘innovative’ interventions in transport from cities in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The theme connects to the Trialog issue 82 (2004) on Urban Mobility (www.trialog-journal.de), whereby a particular interest is on research-based evidence and experience on the following aspects:

  • How are ‘innovative’ urban transport solutions governed during implementation and operation?
  • What are key hard and soft infrastructure and technology components and what is the innovative content?
  • What social, environmental or other objectives do these initiatives pursue and to what extent and why have they been successful or not in achieving them?
  • What are the lessons for replication or application elsewhere?

The issue will be published in English and will contain a maximum of 12 contributions. Articles should not exceed 18,000 characters. Graphics and photographs must be send as separate files as jpg., tif or another format (not only included in the WORD text file). Publishing is for free, however the author have to ensure the quality of English language and of graphics and photographs.

The timetable is as follows:

  • July 30, 2012: submission of short one page proposal for a contribution to the editors
  • August 30, 2012: selection of contributions and information to authors
  • November 30, 2012: submission of full article
  • January 15, 2012: review and comments for revision
  • February 28, 2012: submission of revised manuscript to the editors
  • March 30, 2013: Publication

In case of questions or any concerns, do not hesitate to contact the editors:

Dr. habil. Dirk Heinrichs, Institute of Transport Research, DLR Dr. Wolfgang Scholz, TU Dortmund University.

TRIALOG is:

  • A journal for architects, planners, sociologists, geographers, economists and development planners.
  • A journal for the exchange of professional experience in the field of urban development in the Third World.
  • A journal for the presentation and discussion of new research results and for the discussion of recent concepts of development policies for urban change.
  • A journal of free discussions, of work reports and of documentation of alternative approaches.

The thematic range of TRIALOG includes among other related topics: urbanization and housing policy/ architecture and regional cultures/ecology, technological transfer and appropriate technologies/rural development strategies. TRIALOG is a quarterly journal published in Germany. The last issues were on

106 (3/10) Designing for People – Amos Rapoport
104 (1/10) Perspectives on Urban South Africa
102/3 (3-4/09) Redefining the Urban
101 (2/09) Borders and Migration
100 (1/09) Urban Visions
99 (4/08) East Africa
98 (3/08) Forced Evictions
95/96 (1/08)
94 (3/07) Housing Policies
93 (2/07) Imposing European Urban Structures
92 (1/07) Megacities
91 (4/06) Building on Disasters
90 (3/06) Urban Coalitions
89 (2/06) Controlling Urban Space – Rise of New Actors
88 (1/06) Afghanistan
87 (4/05) Violence and Insecurity in Cities