AUTHOR=Tazzie Yibeltal Dubale , Adugna Dagnachew , Woldetensae Berhanu 

TITLE=Sustainable transport strategies and their implementation barriers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sustainable Cities

VOLUME=Volume 7 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-cities/articles/10.3389/frsc.2025.1524020

DOI=10.3389/frsc.2025.1524020

ISSN=2624-9634

ABSTRACT=Emerging cities like Addis Ababa are now facing rapid urbanization and motorization, which results in an increasing urban mobility challenges. Despite the global advancements in sustainable mobility, these cities are struggling with limited public transport that largely relies on informal and low-capacity transport modes and automobile use, causing traffic congestion, road traffic fatalities, noise pollution, and vehicle emission-related challenges. This paper aims to identify the sustainable transport strategies and key barriers to the implementation of these strategies, taking Addis Ababa as a case study. The study is based on empirical evidence from residents’ and experts’ perspectives, with the support of desk reviews. The analysis was done using descriptive analysis and ordinal logistic regression. The result revealed that the transport strategies in the study city emphasized promoting non-motorized and public transport, mobility management, planning considerations for land use and transport integration, adoption of technological solutions, institutional reforms, and awareness campaigns. It was found that most of the strategies are on paper without effective implementation, and the prevalence of pressing mobility challenges characterizes the city. The findings also indicated that the implementations of various ambitious sustainable transport strategies are constrained by financial shortage, and poor institutional quality with bad governance and management systems, together with weak coordination among institutions. Additionally, a lack of guiding framework for sustainable urban mobility, a lack of political commitment and leadership towards sustainable transport solutions, limited technological adoption, and socio-cultural attitude towards car use with limited alternative mobility options influenced the implementation of the stated strategies. This study suggests addressing the barriers comprehensively and the need for adopting a cost-effective strategy tailored to the study city context in Addis Ababa that helps with the transition toward sustainable mobility and livability.