Forthcoming in Transportation Research Record.

Urban transportation investments present an opportunity to mitigate climate change while supporting effective, clean, safe, and equitable transportation. In this paper, we discuss how a set of urban transportation investments in Latin America responds to the issue of climate change. We analyzed a sample of recent transportation projects funded by the World Bank to learn what kinds of infrastructure, plans, and policies are being pursued, and to assess whether projects developed specifically to address climate change differ from other projects. Loans and grants supported a mix of infrastructure for transit, bicycles, and pedestrians, as well as institutional strengthening. While only a few projects explicitly addressed climate change mitigation, their impacts on mode choice and urban development almost surely have positive effects compared to what would happen without them. In some cases, however, funding for road construction at the urban fringe may induce outward urban expansion and greater auto use. Specifically analyzing the carbon consequences of all projects, as well as their combined effects in the overall system, would provide better ability to track and take credit for carbon mitigation and also could flag potential problem areas. 1