Four Colombian Cities Receive Infrastructure Funding from IDB

The Inter-American Development Bank recently approved $320 million in financing to help Colombia develop strategic public transport systems in the cities of Pasto, Popayán, Armenia and Santa Marta, benefiting 800,000 passengers on a daily basis.

Financing consists of an IDB loan for $300 million and a concessional loan from the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) totaling $20 million. The CTF grants resources for demonstrating, deploying and engaging in scalable transfers of low-carbon technologies to achieve significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

This financing will focus on urban transport infrastructure, emphasizing the facilities used by mass passenger transport systems with improved lane usage, and new passenger stops, stations and transfer terminals. Additional facilties include maintenance workshops and yards, as well as operations control centers and streamlined traffic light control systems.

The initiative will improve the transport service conditions by shortening circulation times of public vehicles and cutting carbon gas emissions by more than half. Emission of CO₂ is to be reduced by up to 78,000 tons within a year.

With the construction of over 103 kilometers of supplementary roads, terminals, stops and supplementary or preload railway tracks, the program will help structure competitive and sustainable cities that will provide citizens with safe transport opportunities under environmental protection, equity and efficiency principles.

It is estimated that by 2020 over 80% of the population will be concentrated in cities.

According to Miroslava Nevo, project leader and specialist, “The way the urban transport system works impacts on urban competitiveness indices and economic productivity, and contributes to the perception of high living standards. This program has the potential to be replicated in other intermediate cities in the region, as was the case with the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) in Colombia.”

The Transportation Ministry will coordinate the execution of the Program activities and the use of the Financing resources through the Managing Entities such as Avante en Pasto, Sistemas Estratégicos de Transporte Público de Santa Marta S. A. S in Santa Marta, Movilidad Futura S.A. S in Popayán and Amable EICE in Armenia. These entities belong to the municipalities that are responsible for developing and implementing transport systems.

IDB financing will be paid out over a 5-year term with a five-year grace period and at a LIBOR-based interest rate. The concessional amount granted by the Clean Technology Fund will have a grace period of 10 years and a payment term of 5 years.