The Politics of Infrastructural Projects: A Case for Evidence-Based Policymaking

Many developing countries currently face tightening fiscal constraints as a result of the global financial crisis and associated reduction in both credit and demand. Policymarkers therefore have less fiscal space within which to undertake projects, so the opportunity cost of any misallocation of resources will be correspondingly higher. There is therefore an increasing need to rely more on evidence-based policymaking (EBPM). The is particularly so for large infrastructural projects, as these tend to be costly, and especially for transportation projects as these are particularly prone to result in sub-optimal outcomes. This paper examines the policy process for the implementation of the Jamaican Highway 2000, one of the largest and most costly infrastructure projects in Jamaica in recent years. A number of primary and secondary data sources were explored to ascertain the extent to which the decision to implement the project reflects a case for evidence-based decision-making in practice. This made it clear that the decision was taken at least partly on political grounds, largely in the absence of any supportive evidence, and on the basis of over-optimistic and unrealistic assumptions, and that this has created a number of serious, long-term challenges for Jamaica.     

Turning Housing Into Driving: Parking Requirements and Density in Los Angeles and New York

This article examines the idea that residential minimum parking requirements are associated with lower housing and population densities and higher vehicle densities (residential vehicles per square mile). Cities frequently use minimum parking requirements to manage traffic, but parking requirements accommodate vehicles, suggesting they should lead to more driving and congestion rather than less. If parking requirements reduce congestion, they likely do so not by reducing the number of vehicles in an area but by reducing the densities of housing and people. We support this idea by comparing the Los Angeles and New York urbanized areas. We show that differences in housing, vehicle, and population densities across and within these urbanized areas are closely correlated with differences in the share of housing units that include parking, and that the share of housing units that include parking is in turn correlated with the stringency of parking requirements. Compared with Los Angeles, New York shifts less of the cost of driving into its housing market. We further show that within New York City, a 10% increase in minimum parking requirements is associated with a 5% increase in vehicles per square mile, a 4% increase in vehicles per person, and a 6% reduction in both population density and housing density. These relationships remain even after controlling for street layout and proximity to the subway.     

海洋刑法学的提出与国际海上犯罪的立法规制

随着人类社会对海洋资源的开发与利用,涉海领域的犯罪将愈演愈烈,直接危及作为海洋大国的中国的经济健康发展,加之我国刑事立法与刑事法学的严重滞后,迫切需要加强海洋刑法学的研究;海洋刑法学的研究对象是国际海上犯罪,其重点在于"国际"、"海上"犯罪,较之一般犯罪在法律适用、行为方式、行为时空等方面存在明显区隔;对于国际条约中所涉及的国际海上犯罪在国内的适用应采取转化的操作模式,可考虑在刑法典中独立设置章节对其进行规定。     

俄罗斯远东地区运输系统现代化改造问题研究

交通运输系统将俄罗斯远东地区内部各主体之间以及与俄罗斯其他地区之间联系起来,是远东地区融入俄罗斯统一经济空间、“确保领土完整和国家统一”的必要硬件条件。也是俄罗斯与亚太地区国家往来的重要基础。面对蓬勃发展的亚太地区,俄罗斯希望通过远东地区实现与亚太地区的经济一体化。为此,俄罗斯着手大力开发远东地区,前不久成立了远东发展部。俄罗斯对该地区交通运输系统进行现代化改造,是改变当地经济硬环境的一个重要举措。     

The Gautrain project in South Africa: a cautionary tale

This article analyses the recently completed Gautrain Rapid Rail Project in the province of Gauteng, South Africa. The Gautrain is the continent's first high-speed rail project, and constitutes an important case in transportation megaproject planning. The article discusses the potential merits and limitations of the project, and ultimately argues that several key problems with the Gautrain should provide readers with a cautionary tale regarding such endeavours. Benefits to the project, such as reduced traffic congestion and job creation, must be weighed against the social and political implications of the project. Thus, the article discusses the following potential problems with the project: it may deepen mobility-related exclusion in the province; it prioritizes wealthy, as opposed to poor, citizens in the allocation of public funds; costs for the project have escalated considerably from initial estimates; and other options for a more effective and integrated transportation plan were not sufficiently considered. This case study conforms to what scholars call the megaprojects paradox in significant ways, and suggests that more rigorous and transparent debate should precede the approval of such projects.     

毗邻朝韩海域越界捕捞活动的特点及对策研究

近年来,我国渔船在毗邻朝韩海域进行越界捕捞活动成为了影响中朝、中韩海域安全稳定的焦点问题,也是困扰我边境管理工作的重难点问题。公安边防部门作为渔船民管理的主管部门,为有效地预防和制止越界捕捞活动,应针对边防管理工作中存在的问题,结合部队的实际情况,从根本上预防和制止越界捕捞行为,有力地维护毗邻朝韩海域的安全与稳定,促进毗邻朝韩海域海洋经济可持续发展。     

俄远东铁路货物运输及其国际合作

铁路运输是远东主要的运输形式,西伯利亚大铁路在远东铁路货物运输中发挥着至关重要的作用。近年来远东铁路运输经济效益较低,面临着许多困难。为此远东铁路部门采取了相应的措施,并取得了一定的成效。远东铁路货物运输潜力巨大,与东北亚地区各国的合作为其未来的发展带来了新的契机。     

海上运输散货"合理损耗"短量索赔的抗辩

就海上运输散装货物后经常发生的货物短量索赔,从实体法和程序法的角度进行了分析,认为承运人和实际承运人对散货运输中发生的合理损耗范围内的货物短量不负赔偿责任从定性角度应没有异议,而如何证明个案中合理损耗具体数量或范围的定量举证则是能否成功抗辩的关键。     

“While a Storm is Raging on the Open Sea”: Regional Development in a Knowledge-based Economy

The Triple Helix of university–industry–government (UIG) relations is elaborated into a systemic model that accounts for interactions among three dimensions. By distinguishing between the respective micro-operations, this model enables us to recombine the “Mode 2” thesis of a new production of scientific knowledge and the study of systems of innovation with the neo-classical perspective on the dynamics of the market. The mutual information in three dimensions provides us with an indicator for the self-organization of the resulting network systems. The probabilistic entropy in this mutual information can be negative in knowledge-based configurations. The knowledge base of an economy can be considered as a second-order interaction effect among interactions at interfaces between institutions and functions in different spheres. Proximity enhances the chances for couplings and, therefore, the formation of technological trajectories. The next-order regime of the knowledge base, however, can be expected to remain pending as selection pressure.