ABSTRACT
Various examples have recently emerged of countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE)2 seeking to catch up politically and economically by drawing lessons from policies in more developed countries (Rose 1993). The uncertainties of policy-making in some of these countries have made policy transfer a particularly attractive option; politicians often see transfer as the quickest solution to many problems without having to reinvent the wheel (Rose 2005; Tavits 2003). This chapter explores international policy transfer, focusing specifically on two examples of attempts to transfer sustainable urban transport concepts from Western Europe to CEE countries. In the two cases examined here, efforts were made to establish German-style public transport authorities (Verkehrsverbünde) in Riga in Latvia, and in Wroclaw in Poland. In these cases, the social and economic situations in the ‘borrowing’ and ‘lending’ countries are very different. So too are the institutional frameworks. As a consequence, the policy transfer process is much more complex than mere copying or emulation.
