Course Title:

RISK MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY

（リスク管理技術論）

Report Title:
Discussion & Explanation About Episodes

Course Instructor:
Makoto Chikaraishi
(Associate Professor at IDEC, Hiroshima University-Japan)
Prepared by:
Akhtar Naseem (M190011)
GRADUATE SCHOOL FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT &
COOPERATION
HIROSHIMA UNIVERSITY-JAPAN
Episode

You are a mayor of the city,

"The traffic congestion in the city is getting severe by every next day. Policymakers suggest
banning the auto-rickshaw in the city as it is considered one reason for the congestion. On the
other hand, many people will lose their job due to this decision.”
Will you support the policy to ban the autorickshaw? Yes/No

Explanation;
I came up with this episode because of the current scenario of traffic jams in most of the developing
countries. This phenomenon of traffic congestion is equally common among most of developing countries.
It has severe consequences on human health such as chronic exposures, long term health risks, and
psychological impacts such as increased anxiety and stress.1 Moreover, traffic jam results in waste of time
and money itself.2 Long ques of vehicles multiplies the fuel consumption, which increases the economic
burden on individuals and states as well. For example, In Poznan, fuel consumption is 50% higher during
heavy congestion of the morning peak traffic between 7 to 9 a.m. 3 Ultimately, traffic congestion results in
a tremendous increase in environmental emissions, which cause severe impacts even on both developed
and developing countries.

In developing countries, due to limited and insufficient public transport facilities, automobile rickshaw is
common in many regions with a variety of forms and names. It is very convenient to use and sometimes

1
Urban Congestion Impacts and Improvements. (2017, October 25). Retrieved December 3, 2019, from
https://miovision.com/blog/urban-congestion-impacts-and-improvements/.
2
Rosen News Team. (2018, December 12). Traffic Congestion Wastes More Than Time. Retrieved December 3,
2019, from https://www.danielrrosen.com/public-transportation-is-quick-response-to-traffic-woes/.
3
Glinski H. (December 2017).Analysis of the potential of autonomous vehicles in reducing the emissions of
greenhouse gases in road transport.Procedia Eng. 2017;192:353-358. Retrieved December 4, 2019, from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877705817326073.
serves as a shuttle service to public transport facilities. One another reason to choose the autorickshaw is
that it is readily available at your doorstep, and you can take it any of your convenient places by paying a
small amount of money. In developing parts of the world, because the public transport infrastructure is not
sufficient, so, autorickshaw became the popular mode of transport. This kind of advantage increases the
demand for autorickshaws, and, ultimately, it became the reason for traffic congestion. Now, if the above-
described episode comes from the policymakers, it will have the following pros and cons
Pros;

 Traffic congestion tends to decrease significantly.

 People can save time and can spend it on useful activities.

 One of the reasons for its popularity is that it can stop anywhere. So, people don’t have to necessarily
walk as sometimes people have to walk from the bus stop or station to reach home. As it can stop
anywhere, that’s why people prefer it over public transport, which operates on the designated
stops/stations. If the rickshaw will ban, then it is quite possible that people will start using public
transport.

 It has the potential to decrease road accidents as rickshaw drivers are observed careless drivers who
push breakers anytime, anywhere, when they see the passengers. Moreover, safety should be a priority
over anything.

 The government can save the cost for the need of expanding the public infrastructure, such as building
roads and bridges to deal with traffic congestion.

 It will help to avoid the long term disastrous impacts of traffic jams on the human body.

 Usually, the autorickshaw is not compiled on modern technologies; instead, it runs on diesel-based
engines that pollute the environment badly. Hence, we can limit emissions by banning it.

Cons;

 Many people will lose their job and because usually, people associate with this profession are
uneducated. It is difficult to compensate them in other positions. Moreover, the government in
developing countries faces economic instability; that’s why it is challenging to create new vacancies. 4

 The accessibility to public transport will reduce.

4
Burke, J. (2010, March 18). Delhi plans ban on autorickshaws. Retrieved December 4, 2019, from
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/mar/18/delhi-plans-ban-autorickshaws.
 Individual automobile users will increase significantly.

 There would be severe socio-economic impacts on all the stakeholders related to the auto-rickshaw
industry, such as factory workers who are working in rickshaw manufacturing industries, rickshaw
drivers, rickshaw manufacturers, and the end-users as well.

Importance of Risk Communication;

It is essential to communicate the risks which can be expected after the implementation of the policy. In
many cases, there is a gap between the policymakers and the affectees, which causes problems while
implementing the policies, and if implemented, it could have a severe impact on different stakeholders.5 It
was observed while playing the game with the colleagues that there could be multiple alternatives for one
problem. For example, specific to the banning of the autorickshaw, there could be many alternatives. Such
as dedicating a particular route to the rickshaws and identifying the stops and loading and unloading.

Similarly, there could be an odd-even rule in which the autorickshaws can operate on a specific day.6 This
rule is currently working in many Asian developing countries. It can compensate for all the stakeholders
and on the other hand, can help to get the intended benefits as well.

To propose the sound policies, it is better to involve all the stake shoulders in the decision process, and to
include them in the decision process; risk communication is mandatory.

5
Khan, M. R. (2006). Banning Two-stroke Auto-rickshaws in Lahore: Policy Implications. The Pakistan
Development Review, 45(4II), 1169–1185. doi: 10.30541/v45i4iipp.1169-1185
6
Burke, J. (2010, March 18). Delhi plans ban on autorickshaws. Retrieved December 6, 2019, from
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/mar/18/delhi-plans-ban-autorickshaws.
Episode

You are a landowner,

" The government plans to build a road in an urban periphery area by using a partial/complete
land of the different landowners. Due to budget limitations government may not compensate
the landowner whose land will use for road. On the other hand, building a road will increase
land prices significantly as economic activites are supposed to be happen in future.”

Will you support the decision? Yes/No

There are many experiences around us in which we can learn that taking the risk can give you the most
rewarding experience and the many successful people use to take risks in life.7 Taking the risk makes you
a hard person and will provide you with a life learning lesson that you can not forget in your life. This
episode is about the social life in which if you are willing to take the risk in your life, you can have the
probability of getting more benefits as compared to the situation in which you don’t take the risk, and you
remain the same. The development of a new road usually affects the nearby properties to a large extent.8 In
the above episode, if you are willing to take the risk in which your property can be partially/completely lost
or no loss at all, instead your land/property values will increase significantly. On the other hand, you remain
constant and don’t prefer to take the risk in your life.

Pros;

 Due to road construction commuting will be easy, which will equally benefit all the landowners.

 The cost of mobility will be lower in the future, and decisions can be very beneficial for long term
planning.

 The proposed road will increase the accessibility, and the formers at the periphery areas can export their
products to the market easily.

7
How Taking Risks Can Lead You to a Better Life. (2018, August 9). Retrieved December 6, 2019, from
https://www.goodnet.org/articles/how-taking-risks-lead-you-to-better-life.
8
Al-Mumaiz, M., & Evdorides, H. (2019). Changes in land value due to road development. Proceedings of the
Institution of Civil Engineers - Transport, 172(1), 36–46. doi: 10.1680/jtran.17.00078
 As its government proposal, it means there is a potential in the area for future development, so it is
better to support the decision to take advantage of the decision.

Cons;

 In case partial or all of my land comes under the proposed road plan, it will be a huge loss to my
property if the government could not compensate.

 I’m not sure what kind of development is going to be constructed in the future so that it can be non-
beneficial as well.

 The government plan for future development might fail; in that case, there will not be a significant
increase in land values.

Importance of Risk Communication;

After the policy implementation, there might be consequences for some landowners, such as those
landowners whose land will come under the road plan. The government should find another way in which
it is possible to create a less risky environment and to create a win-win situation for all the stakeholders.
Though there are more chances that your land will not be part of the road plan because of the many
landowners. But still, there are little chances in which you are completely lost the game.

The government should analyze all kinds of possible options by involving all the stakeholders and come up
with the least risky plan. Likewise, if the government is unable to compensate the landowners due to budget
limitations, there can be other ways such as inviting the private companies, public-private partnerships,
fixing some road pricing in which the generated revenue can be used to compensate the affectees afterward,
etc.