Optimal Strategic Plan for Sustainable Urban Transport System in Kathmandu City Centre : Using Decision Support Systems

Abstract: There are many factors associated with an urban environment that enrich or  diminish the experience of the environment. These factors have a significant influence on how  an urban morphology is appraised within the social, economical, and environmental  framework. One of such factors is the urban transport system that represents the mobility of  the people and accessibility to public services. This thesis is an assessment of a current  transport system in Kathmandu city centre in comparison to Kathmandu Sustainable Urban  Transport Project (KSUTP) promoted by Ministry of Physical Planning and Works in  cooperation from Asian Development Bank (ADB). The study aims to find the optimal  strategic alternative between the current system and KSUTP. The focus area is the historic  city centre, because of its cultural, historical, architectural, and aesthetical significance.    Two methods are used for two different purposes; first to measure people’s appraisal and  second, to evaluate action alternatives. Measurement of Experience in Environment from  Results of Core affect Investigation (MEERCI) is used to measure people’s appraisal and  experience of the urban characters of Kathmandu city centre. The results from this survey will  provide a background on people’s assessment of the city environs, and collected data from  field work will be used in Generic Multi-Attribute Analysis (GMAA) model to determine the  best strategic plan for developing sustainable urban transport system for Kathmandu city  centre. The hard facts and figures are collected from authorities, ministries, and previous  researches, which is then entered into the model to evaluate the optimal alternative.     It is concluded that improvements in the current transport system in Kathmandu city centre,  with the implementation of KSUTP, will result in better environment for the local population,  local economy, public services, and transport facilities. In short, the quality of life will be  enhanced with an upgrade in the urban transport system.