The programme has been developed through a strategic partnership between the Transformative Urban Mobility Initiative (TUMI), the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, and LSE Cities at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and is financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
LTT aims to equip participants with the tools and strategies necessary to reshape urban mobility through a series of policy and leadership sessions. The programme seeks to enhance their skills, enabling them to navigate the political challenges inherent in transport transitions and ultimately to mitigate cities’ congestion, foster inclusivity, and reduce carbon emissions.
The programme, hosted by LSE Cities, is tailored to address the unprecedented motorisation, persistent congestion, social exclusion risks, and soaring transport-related carbon emissions facing cities today. Key components of the executive education programme include policy-oriented sessions covering sustainable urban transport fundamentals, technology, equity, and street design. Additionally, participants will engage in leadership sessions to enhance implementation tactics, stakeholder analysis, and agenda setting. This involves honing skills in negotiation, narrative development, campaign building, and media training.
A unique feature of the programme is the dedicated Transitions Lab in London, where participants collaborate on a transport policy challenge of their choosing, engaging with international peers and receiving support from LSE faculty. With a focus on building context-specific strategies, the Leading Transport Transitions programme will facilitate peer-learning and knowledge exchange across emerging economy contexts.
Delivered through LSE Cities' innovative blended learning format, the programme spans two modules. The online module, commencing with digital content on a dedicated learning platform and live virtual meetings with LSE Faculty starts in early January. In March, Mayors and transport leaders will travel to London for a three-day, in-person module where, among other things they will explore the city's innovative transport solutions, including the Oyster Card, cycle hire schemes, and Congestion Charge.
As cities worldwide grapple with the complex issues of urban mobility, Leading Transport Transitions stands as a leading example of collaborative, forward-thinking education, offering global leaders the knowledge and skills required to guide in a new era of affordable, safe, low-carbon, and inclusive urban transportation.
The 20 mayors and high-level urban transport leaders joining the programme are:
- Shalini Agrawal, Municipal Commissioner, Surat Municipal Corporation, India
- Dail Umamil Asri, Head of the Sub-Directorate of Land Transportation and Railways, Indonesia
- Judy Balla, Physical Planning Officer, Kisumu, Kenya
- Fabrice Barisanga, Director General in Charge of Transport, Rwanda
- Abdelghani Bouaichi, Vice-President of Agadir, Morocco
- Diana Guadalupe Caiza Telenchana, Mayor of Ambato, Ecuador
- Elaine Chang, City Engineer in the Special Projects Department, Kota Kinabalu City Hall, Malaysia.
- Cynthia Chávez Ríos, General Director of Mobility, Leon, Mexico (2021–2023)
- Chilando Chitangala, Mayor of Lusaka, Zambia
- Jimmy Cruz Jiménez, Mayor of Curridabat, Costa Rica
- Mzia Giorgobiani, Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Infrastructure, Georgia
- José Felipe Jerez Abascal, Development Planning Secretary, Sucre, Bolivia
- Alex Johnson, Head of Department of Transport, Metro Assembly, Accra, Ghana
- Mikhail Krasnov, Mayor of Tunja, Colombia
- Carolina Leitao, Mayor of Peñalolén, Chile
- Petro Olenych, Chief Digital Transformation Officer and Deputy Mayor, Kyiv, Ukraine
- Ana Valéria Ribeiro Borges, Executive Director of the Urban Mobility Secretariat, Belém, Brazil
- Wisanu Subsompon, Deputy Governor of Bangkok, Thailand
- Erion Veliaj, Mayor of Tirana, Albania
- Ana Cristina Wollmann Zornig Jayme, Financing and Public Investment Advisor, Research and Urban Planning Institute (IPPUC), Curitiba, Brazil