Technology transfer to the Caribbean: Case study of Kingston, Jamaica

Technology transfer to developing countries has traditionally involved the transfer of tools and methodologies developed in industrialized nations for use in poorer developing countries. Good technology transfer, however, includes knowledge of the relationships between the fundamental principles involved in the design of the technology, rather than implementation of an existing finished product. For successful transfer of technology to developing countries to occur, it is important to recognize the differences between developing countries and industrialized nations because differences in social and economic conditions between the two types of countries may warrant alternative approaches both to analysis and to implementation of solutions. The transfer of transportation technology can be inappropriate where driver behavior is a significant factor, such as in the analysis of intersections controlled by stop signs. Observations of drivers at stop-controlled intersections in Kingston, Jamaica, show that drivers seem to be more interactive than those in the United States. For example, drivers on the major approach of a two-way stop-controlled intersection have been observed to yield their right-of-way to vehicles on the minor or stop-controlled approach. The objectives of this research are to assess the suitability of methodologies developed for use in the United States for evaluating stop-controlled intersections in Kingston and to propose an alternative methodology that may be more appropriate for Kingston and locales in other developing countries with similar driver and roadway characteristics.