Project Stakeholders and Objectives | 25
Some objectives will be common to all stakeholders; others will be specific to some groups. Some stakeholders might have opposing objectives. Common objectives typically involve improvements to transportation operations, including (a) reduced transportation costs, (b) reduced transportation-related global and local emissions, (c) reduced noise, (d) reduced congestion, and (e) improved road safety. Exclusive objectives depend on the specific interests of each stakeholder group and, where competing, will need to be balanced against one another by project planners. For instance, public transportation users will be interested in making transportation more affordable. They will also seek to maintain or improve service stops in their particular locales. A transportation authority may be interested in maximizing the quality of service, while the city or metropolitan area government will be interested in keeping user fares low. Incumbent operators, as well as other transportation service operators, will seek to maintain or improve the size of their business and their level of income. Private financiers and suppliers will focus on repayment. Meanwhile, businesses along transit routes will want increased access for their goods or services and minimal disruptions during project development. Planners should identify stakeholders’ restrictions, especially as these relate to their capacity or willingness to deliver on the project’s objectives. For instance, the city government may be concerned about perceived negative effects on a specific group of transportation service providers or may want to minimize the loss of jobs. The national government may impose some limits on emissions, propose a particular vehicle technology, or require minimum private sector participation. Similarly, incumbent operators may have a deal with a bus manufacturer or an operational structure that makes it cheaper to buy buses from a specific firm. Similarly, financiers may feel more comfortable lending to an existing operator than to a special-purpose vehicle or, on the contrary, may not be able to lend to incumbent operators. It is critical to assess the capacity of incumbent operators in relation to corporate governance, operations, and access to finance. Similarly, local financiers may not have the capacity to assess specific project risks, or local markets may not be deep enough to provide financing beyond a certain tenure.
REFERENCES APMG International. 2018. “9.1 How to Conduct the Market Sounding.” In PPP Certification Program Guide. Buckinghamshire, UK: APMG International. https://ppp-certification.com /ppp-certification-guide/91-how-conduct-market-sounding. World Bank. 2018. “Guidance Note on Conducting Market Sounding and Project Marketing.” World Bank, Washington, DC.
