Municipalities around the world are implementing new technologies designed to give their cities’ transportation a greener reputation. The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy just announced its pick for the greenest city on the planet. The ITDP awarded Guangzhou, China its 2011 Sustainable Transport Award on Monday, Jan 24.

The Sustainable Transport Award is given each year to a city that has made significant inroads in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating a more sustainable, livable urban environment by embracing innovative transportation strategies.

In honor of the awards, we have compiled a list of five cities that are proving their commitment to a greener future in transportation:

1. Guangzhou, China: Recipient of the 2011 Sustainable Transport Award, the city is praised for its successful implementation of a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that seamlessly integrates bike lines, bike share and metro stations. The city accommodates 800,000 passengers through its BRT system each day.
2. Tehran, Iran: Runner up in the 2011 Sustainable Transport Award Ceremony, Tehran is recognized as one of the largest and densest cities in the world. Pollution is so extreme that the government periodically declares “holidays,” where schools and factories shut down due to high pollution levels. However, the city is applauded for implementing aggressive strategies to tackle its pollution problems. Last year, Tehran added 80 more kilometers to its 160-kilometer metro system. The railway now caters to 2 million daily passengers. In addition, the city has developed a 100 kilometer BRT system that carries another 1.8 million passengers per day. Tehran has also regularized air pollution monitoring systems and now displays large billboards alerting commuters to current air quality conditions.
3. Mexico City, Mexico: With the launch of Ecobici, Mexico City is becoming a hot new cycling city. In just three months, 4,000 people have taken 50,000 trips on the 1,100 bikes the city recently installed at 85 stations throughout the city center. Ecobici is part of a 15-year strategy called Plan Verde. Mexico City is developing new bike lanes to accommodate cyclists and plans to add thousands more bikes to the system.
4. London, England: Mexico City isn’t the only city to infuse its roads with bikes. London Mayor Boris Johnson has outlined an ambitious new plan to boost its current bike rate, which comprises just 2 percent of all trips in the city. The One in Five by 2025 plan aims to increase the number of bike trips taken throughout the city of London to 20 percent. Johnson has invested £110 million into the initiative, which will construct a network of 12 “cycle superhighways” that will connect outer suburbs with the city center. .
5. Masdar City, Abu Dubia, United Arab Emirates: Originally meant to be a prototype for the world’s first zero carbon city, leaders of Masdar City are now defining it as a low carbon city. Though the project might have had to reign back its ambition, the concept city is unveiling cutting edge technology for green transportation. Masdar City is the first city to implement the Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) car – a “sleek four-passenger vehicle [that] runs on an electric motor, making it clean and carbon free.”

Planners, designers, strategists, technologists and mayors from around the world will be gathering again for the “Global Green Cities” conference in San Francisco, Feb. 23-25. The event will continue the global discussion on how design, technology and behavior come together in a successful strategy for a greener future.