More than 80 participants joined ADB's Insight Thursday session last September 11, 2025, to see how the Asian Transport Observatory (ATO) turns data into practical insights for supporting investment and policy decisions related to transport across Asia and the Pacific.

• Asia's transport needs are surging. Asia needs to invest around USD 2.7 trillion per year up to 2035. This is laid within a context wherein different developmental goals – accessibility, climate change, air pollution, resilience, among others – must be addressed.
• Making transport data accessible. ATO provides accessible transport-focused datasets spanning 52 economies, 460 urban centers, over 700 indicators, 430k data points, over a thousand policy documents, and costs for over 900 transport projects.
• Targeted knowledge products that turn data into clear, actionable messages. ATO produces a variety of knowledge products (e.g. reports, profiles, visualization and analysis tools) covering multiple transport themes and spanning subregions, economies, and urban centers—available on the ATO website.
• Usage in ADB workstreams. Use cases include inputs to the following: ADB transport strategy, ADB Key Indicators, Asian Development Outlook 2023 background, Asia E-mobility platform, COVID guidance, Strategy 2030 updates, Green Roads, Gender in Transport Toolkit, Asia-Pacific Road Transport Observatory and many other bespoke outputs.
• Active partnerships and outreach amplify impact. ATO collaborates with various organizations to raise the utilization of the data across the region, and to facilitate data sharing, and aid processes towards putting in impactful solutions. Over the last 2 years, ATO has been cited at least 240 times, and downloads of ATO's workbooks, profiles, and reports have accumulated to over 300 thousand times.

Discussions emphasized how ATO evidence already supports ADB workstreams, and how ATO is also playing a role in external processes and discussions relating to transport in the region. With transport needs projected at about USD 2.7 trillion per year to 2035, the event underscored the value of open, consistent data to guide investment and policy.

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