IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jotrge/v113y2023ics0966692323002107.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Equity on the road in Uganda: How do interface bureaucrats integrate marginalized groups in the transport sector?

Author

Listed:
  • Muhoza, Cassilde
  • Larsen, Rasmus Kløcker
  • Diaz-Chavez, Rocio

Abstract

Research on road transport has paid growing attention to social equity objectives. However, little work has examined the role of the government officials that are charged to implement - notably how they make sense of and respond to mismatches between expectations and reality in their regulatory mandates. Drawing on a theoretical framing focused on interface bureaucracy and primary data from semi-structured interviews, this paper examines the agency of government officials in Kampala, Uganda. The analysis highlights how they take initiative to address social equity concerns, seeking to navigate implementation barriers through i) lobbying people in power, ii) seeking leverage in conditionalities of external funding, iii) alliance-building with civil society, and iv) proactive use of city level by-laws. This adds one of few empirical studies available on this subject within the transport studies literature and in the context of East Africa. It also offers a contribution towards conceptualizing what the agency of government officials might mean for the operationalization of key policy objectives in the transport sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Muhoza, Cassilde & Larsen, Rasmus Kløcker & Diaz-Chavez, Rocio, 2023. "Equity on the road in Uganda: How do interface bureaucrats integrate marginalized groups in the transport sector?," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:113:y:2023:i:c:s0966692323002107
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2023.103738
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692323002107
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2023.103738?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Campbell, Kayleigh B. & Rising, James A. & Klopp, Jacqueline M. & Mbilo, Jacinta Mwikali, 2019. "Accessibility across transport modes and residential developments in Nairobi," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 77-90.
    2. Kenneth W. Abbott & David Levi-Faur & Duncan Snidal, 2017. "Introducing Regulatory Intermediaries," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 670(1), pages 6-13, March.
    3. Walter Alando & Joachim Scheiner, 2016. "Framing Social Inclusion as a Benchmark for Cycling-Inclusive Transport Policy in Kisumu, Kenya," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 4(3), pages 46-60.
    4. Behrens, Roger & McCormick, Dorothy & Orero, Risper & Ommeh, Marilyn, 2017. "Improving paratransit service: Lessons from inter-city matatu cooperatives in Kenya," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 79-88.
    5. Booth, Chris & Richardson, Tim, 2001. "Placing the public in integrated transport planning," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 8(2), pages 141-149, April.
    6. Grieco, Margaret, 2015. "Poverty mapping and sustainable transport: A neglected dimension," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 3-9.
    7. Sagaris, Lake, 2018. "Citizen participation for sustainable transport: Lessons for change from Santiago and Temuco, Chile," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 402-410.
    8. Bueno Rezendede Castro, André & Ortega Sandoval, Abby Daniela & Odamtten, Genevieve, 2022. "Up around the bend? How transport poverty can lead to social exclusion in a low-income community in Lagos, Nigeria," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bhuyan, Atanu & Roy, Vivek, 2024. "Paratransit services and socio-economic planning: A review uncovering critical insights and developmental pathways," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    2. Castañeda, Paola, 2021. "Cycling case closed? A situated response to Samuel Nello-Deakin's “Environmental determinants of cycling: Not seeing the forest for the trees?”," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    3. Aryana Soliz, 2021. "Creating Sustainable Cities through Cycling Infrastructure? Learning from Insurgent Mobilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-21, August.
    4. Daniel Y. Mo & H. Y. Lam & Weikun Xu & G. T. S. Ho, 2020. "Design of Flexible Vehicle Scheduling Systems for Sustainable Paratransit Services," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-18, July.
    5. Sovacool, Benjamin K. & Daniels, Chux & AbdulRafiu, Abbas, 2022. "Transitioning to electrified, automated and shared mobility in an African context: A comparative review of Johannesburg, Kigali, Lagos and Nairobi," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    6. Ryzhkov, Alexander & Sarzhan, Yuliya, 2020. "Market initiative and central planning: A study of the Moscow bus network," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    7. Aderiana Mutheu Mbandi & Jan R. Böhnke & Dietrich Schwela & Harry Vallack & Mike R. Ashmore & Lisa Emberson, 2019. "Estimating On-Road Vehicle Fuel Economy in Africa: A Case Study Based on an Urban Transport Survey in Nairobi, Kenya," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-28, March.
    8. du Preez, Dirk & Zuidgeest, Mark & Behrens, Roger, 2019. "A quantitative clustering analysis of paratransit route typology and operating attributes in Cape Town," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    9. Vergel-Tovar, C. Erik & Leape, Jonathan & Villegas Carrasquilla, Mónica & Peñas Arana, Maria Claudia & Toro Gonzalez, Daniel & Canon Rubiano, Leonardo & Salas Barón, Eliana & Martinez, Paulo, 2022. "Mapping the transit network of greater Cartagena with mobile phones: Coverage, accessibility, and informality," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    10. Manning, Stephan & Vavilov, Stanislav, 2023. "Global development agenda meets local opportunities: The rise of development-focused entrepreneurship support," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(7).
    11. Chowdhury, Subeh & Ceder, Avishai (Avi) & Schwalger, Bradley, 2015. "The effects of travel time and cost savings on commuters’ decision to travel on public transport routes involving transfers," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 151-159.
    12. Acheampong, Ransford A. & Asabere, Stephen Boahen, 2022. "Urban expansion and differential accessibility by car and public transport in the Greater Kumasi city-region, Ghana—A geospatial modelling approach," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    13. Maria Cieśla & Elżbieta Macioszek, 2022. "The Perspective Projects Promoting Sustainable Mobility by Active Travel to School on the Example of the Southern Poland Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-18, August.
    14. Dastan Bamwesigye & Petra Hlavackova, 2019. "Analysis of Sustainable Transport for Smart Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-20, April.
    15. Ali SOLTANI & Ahmad NAMDARIAN & Nayereh DAYARIAN, 2012. "Feasibility Of Transport Demand Management Through A Bottom-Up Planning Approach," Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, Research Centre in Public Administration and Public Services, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 7(4), pages 63-71, November.
    16. Bulckaen, Jeroen & Keseru, Imre & Macharis, Cathy, 2016. "Sustainability versus stakeholder preferences: Searching for synergies in urban and regional mobility measures," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 40-49.
    17. Johan H. Giliomee & Brendan G. Pretorius & Larissa Füßl & Bernd Thomas & Marthinus J. Booysen, 2024. "Using Solar PV and Stationary Storage to Buffer the Impact of Electric Minibus Charging in Grid-Constrained Sub-Saharan Africa," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-18, January.
    18. Bansal, Prateek & Gadepalli, Ravi & AitBihiOuali, Laila, 2023. "Eliciting mobility preferences of Indians for E-rickshaws: Evidence from Gurugram," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 19-30.
    19. Wong, Dan & Baker, Douglas, 2014. "Improving US airport taxicab services through governance arrangements," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 126-131.
    20. Zhangfeng Yao & Kunhui Ye & Liang Xiao & Xiaowei Wang, 2021. "Radiation Effect of Urban Agglomeration’s Transportation Network: Evidence from Chengdu–Chongqing Urban Agglomeration, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-21, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:113:y:2023:i:c:s0966692323002107. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-transport-geography .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.