Chile's regional governors should be '100% in charge' of public transport – former minister
Chile’s new regional governors, who took office last month, should be “100% in charge” of public transport instead of the national government, which currently exercises this responsibility through its regional branches, former public works minister Alberto Undurraga told BNamericas.
The May general election, which also involved votes for municipal authorities and the members of the convention in charge of drafting a new constitution, also included the country’s first elections for regional governors, although what powers they should have is still a matter of debate.
Most of the nation's public transport is handled by the transport ministry (MTT), but Undurraga, who served as minister between 2014 and 2018, said “the national government should transfer those powers to regional governments and this must be accompanied by the necessary resources.”
In this scenario, he says, the new governors should be able to launch tenders, carry out studies and manage public transport systems, and he also argues that they should be able to supervise urban highways.
As for companies such as rail state firm EFE, which manages various passenger rail services, or the operator of Santiago’s Metro, Undurraga says that regional administrations should have at least one representative on the board of these companies, adding that this should also apply to port operators.
When asked about what roles regional governors should have in concessions, the former minister said that “when it comes to public transport, to be in charge. In other areas, to be one of the main counterparts, since they represent the public.”
Infrastructure think tank CPI, to which Undurraga is currently is an advisor, recently presented a proposal to the governor of the Santiago Metropolitan region, Claudio Orrego, calling for increased powers for the regional government in terms of public transport, highways, control of vehicle flows to reduce air pollution and water infrastructure.
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