This event highlighted how the traditional way of charging road users based on fuel consumption will become obsolete, as more people switch to electric vehicles and other low-carbon modes, and how this leaves a funding gap for the road sector, requiring new systems that encourage green mobility alongside financial sustainability.

One of the key obstacles to greening road transportation is the cost and disruption associated with retrofitting existing roads and energy networks to accommodate charging infrastructure. The Dig Once Approach presents a potential solution to address this challenge. Generally, Dig Once is an umbrella term that is used to describe a variety of policies and approaches that ensure the coordination of infrastructure projects so that the number of excavations are limited.

This biennial flagship knowledge sharing event organized by the Transport Sector Group of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has become the premier platform for policy dialogue in Asia and the Pacific. It brings together key transport and urban development officials from ADB’s developing member countries, international experts, development partners, researchers, and representatives from civil society and the private sector. Various issues and challenges relating to transport in the region are discussed.