The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), commissioned by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, has released the report “Smart Mobility PPPs in Latin America and the Caribbean” at the PPPAmericas Conference.

According to the report, the region now has the highest rate of urbanization in the developing world. This has led to many problems like overcrowded public transport, pollution, and increasingly longer commutes in both big and small cities –but has also spurred exploration of mobility alternatives.

From bikes and bus rapid transport systems to electric cars and traffic-tracking apps, countries in the region are implementing smart mobility solutions that are becoming increasingly popular. For instance, there are bike-sharing programs in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Uruguay. In addition, Latin America accounts for nearly two-thirds of the world’s bus rapid transport passengers.

Such smart mobility solutions often include the participation of both private businesses and government agencies through public-private partnerships, which are also used for financing large-scale initiatives such as metro systems and highways. In all, Latin America and the Caribbean account for 11 percent of global investment in PPPs.

The report also includes case studies of a various smart mobility PPP, such as the public bikeshare PPP in Chile, the car-sharing PPP in Brazil, the metro PPP in Peru, and the BRT PPP in São Paulo. As the result of increased PPP use in transport projects, Latin America accounted or 11% of global PPP investment between 1985 and 2014.

The report notes that the most popular transportation-related PPPs involve private sector technology that could not otherwise be offered by the state, and those that promote green technologies. This will continue to thrive when a more mature mobility PPP market continues to emerge and present rich opportunities for investors to participate in transport and mobility solutions business.

A full version of the report is available in here.