8/4/2019 3-25-1 Public Participation and Consultation

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T o o l k i T f o r P u b l i c - P r i v a T e P a r T n e r s h i P s i n r o a d s & h i g h w a y s

78Module

3module 3 : Policy and PlanninguPdaTed march 2009

Public Participation and Consultation

Participation and Consultation ensure that the communities directly concerned byhighway programs and projects are properly informed and participate in the deci-sion-making process.

Why is public consultation important?

Consultation increases the level o transparency and it may help to improve regulatoryquality by:

Bringing into the discussion the expertise, perspectives, and ideas or alternative

actions o those directly aected;Helping regulators to balance opposing interests;

Identiying unintended eects and practical problems. Using pre-notication itis possible to oresee more easily the consequences o some planned policies,becoming one o the most productive ways to identiy administrative burdens;

Providing a quality check on the administrations assessment o costs and benets;

Identiying interactions between regulations rom various parts o government;

Consultation processes can also enhance voluntary compliance or two reasons:

First, because changes are announced in a timely manner and there is time toadjust to changes, and

Second, because the sense o legitimacy and shared ownership that givesconsultation motivate aected parties to comply.

Ensuring public participation

When designing a new road, public participation is not only part o the environmental

procedures, but in act an integral part o a PPP process as a whole. In such a process,not only the project itsel has to be accepted, as in a traditional procedure, but also the

act that part o the public responsibility is transerred to the private sector. Inorming,consulting and encouraging the public to participate is, in this case, o the utmostimportance.

Depending on the type o project, the type o PPP and the stage o development, moreor less public inormation and consultation are under the responsibility o the privateoperator. In many cases it is necessary or the operator to have strong support rom thepublic authorities, because they alone are legitimate in the eyes o the public. To besuccessul, such a communication process must be careully planned and managed.

8/4/2019 3-25-1 Public Participation and Consultation

2/2

T o o l k i T f o r P u b l i c - P r i v a T e P a r T n e r s h i P s i n r o a d s & h i g h w a y s

79Module

3module 3 : Policy and PlanninguPdaTed march 2009

Planning and managing public participation

When maintaining and operating a road, public opinion is useul or the private operator

to improve its operating processes. Public consultation is also, or the public authorities,

a way to assess the perormance o the operator and constitutes an integral part o theregulation process.

In developing plans or consultations, the rst requirement is to identiy the stakeholders,i.e. individuals and groups who have some interest, direct or otherwise, which should be

involved in this process. They typically include:

Project beneciaries, including the users o the new highway acility and thosebenetting rom less trac on existing roads.

Private sector.

Potential losers or those at risk rom negative impacts rom the project.

Other stakeholders or parties with an interest in the project, such as local andnational governments and elected ocials, experts and non-governmentalorganizations (NGOs).

Other actors whose local knowledge may assist in identiying potential impactsand assessing the viability o proposed alternatives.

At the local level, social science analysis techniques can be used to examine therelationships between groups and individuals, identiying those with the greatest powerto infuence decisions and outcomes, and the orms o consultation which are most likely

to elicit the knowledge and input o people with dierent interests.