The traffic flow is monitored daily by Companhia de Engenharia de Tráfego - Company of Engineering of Traffic - CET; CET monitors 820 km of the busiest streets in the city via sensors and cameras; the information is available on-line in real time at this map of transit flow in São Paulo.

O Globo interviewed several specialists, who appointed several flaws in the way that São Paulo deals with the problems of transit and transportation. There are fewever vehicles in São Paulo than in Los Angeles (there are 6 million cars in the city of São Paulo, and 9,5 million in the metropolitan area), but cars move faster in LA thanks to a better infrastructure.

One serious problem is the lack of long term planning. For example, most vehicles going from the interior of the State to the Port of Santos must drive across the city, because of lack of alternatives; there is a plan for the construction of a Rodoanel (Ring Drive) around the city, but it started to be built over ten years ago and to date only 32 km (20 mi) were finished.

Other reason mentioned is the rapid growth in the number of vehicles (over the last decade, the fleet grew ten times more than the population) coupled with the proverbial lack of education of Brazilian drivers. Everyday, several accidents happen because of misconduts, and each single accident may be enough to slow down transit for several hours.

Below, comparison of taxi prices in a few Brazilian cities (bandeirada + price per km + price per hour at low speeds):

São Paulo:  R$ 3,50 + R$ 2,10 + R$ 28,00

Rio de Janeiro: R$ 4,30 + R$ 1,25 + R$ 15,75

Porto Alegre: R$ 2,76 + R$ 1,37 + R$ 10

Brasília: R$ 3,30 + R$ 1,40 + R$ 18

Recife: R$ 3,00 + R$ R$ 1,40 + R$ 11

Natal: R$ 3,00 + R$ 1,71 + R$ 17,54

On top of that, passengers start to pay a 50% surcharge as soon as the taxi leaves the city of São Paulo and enters a neighbor city, such as Guarulhos and São Bernardo. And, of course, there is a weekend and late night surcharge (called Bandeira 2), of 40%.

The high prices are causing a decrease in the number of passengers. According to the taxi drivers Union, there were about 800,000 passengers a day back in the 1980s, which dropped to about 350,000 nowadays. Many passengers today are employees of corporations (which pay the bills) or attendants of events.

But, how do prices in São Paulo compare to those in other big and expensive cities, such as London, Tokyo or New York?

To try to answer that question, we present below some of the luxury apartments which are currently being sold in the city.

On the Park Towers; the towers were called Hyde Park and Central Park. Situated right beside Parque Burle Marx, in Morumbi. Each tower has 25 floors, with one apartment per floor, and a duplex penthouse.

Indoor and outdoor swimming pools, with warmed water. Sauna, spa, lounge with library. Balcony with 78 sq.m. overlooking Parque Burle Marx. Ready for moving in (since Oct. 2007).

Area: from 607 to 1034 sq.m.
Price: from R$ 3 million to R$ 5 million.

Adolpho Carlos Lindenberg apartments, in Morumbi.

Only twelve apartments, each with 1,233 sq.m., all with a view to a reserve of the Atlantic Forest.

Each unit has six suites. The master suite has an area of 237 sq.m., two closets, two bathrooms with warmed floor and sauna.

Each apartment has twelve parking slots. Each apartment has a small private cinema, and a balcony with 85 sq. m.

Ready to move in: January 2008.
Price: R$ 11 million.

Particolare apartments, in Campo Belo.

The design allows the owners to adapt the interior space to their own needs and tastes. Windows of 2,35 meters, allowing more luminosity.

Area of apartments: from 385 to 674 sq.m. Three swimming pools, one tennis court, play grounds, lan house and even a spa center ran by the Brazilian branch of French company L’Occitane.

Move in: October 2009.
Price: from R$ 1.6 to R$ 3.7 million.

Parque Cidade Jardim, situated by Marginal Pinheiros.

Designed to be a complex of shoppings, offices and apartments, Parque Cidade Jardim will implement the concept of cocoon: residents may have everything they need within the condo.

In a first stage, due May 2008, there will be four residential towers and a shopping center. Further on, commercial towers and more residential towers will be built.

Area: from 237 to 1,807 sq.m.

Price: between R$ 2 and R$ 18 million. Rumors go that the penthouses of this condo will be the most expensive apartments in São Paulo.

However, a few of those Historic farms were preserved. The owners of thirteen farms gathered together to form an association called Fazendas Paulistas - Farms of São Paulo (click to visit website).

By visiting these farms, tourists can see what life was like back in the 19th century (the oldest farm dates back to the 18th century). The main houses and their architectures were preserved, as well as the buildings were coffee was processed and stored.

Visitors can check in to some of the hotels (some hotels are for daily tours only) and enjoy other services such as horse riding, trekking, fauna and flora observation, enjoying regional food.

There are 38,000 restaurants in São Paulo; in London, there are 11,000. There are 5,000 pizzerias.

São Paulo is the third biggest Italian city in the world, the biggest Japanese city outside Japan, the biggest Spanish city outside Spain, the biggest Portuguese city outside Portugal, the third biggest Lebanese city outside Lebanon.

São Paulo is the biggest event center in Latin America, hosting about 70,000 events per year. Out of the 160 biggest Fairs conducted in Brazil, 120 take place in São Paulo. São Paulo has 120 theaters and show houses, 71 museums and 11 cultural centers; 100 plays are performed in theaters every week.

The largest University of Brazil, USP, is in São Paulo; the first School of Law in Brazil was founded in 1827 in São Paulo.

São Paulo is seat of 3 out of the 5 largest Brazilian newspapers; 7 out of the 10 largest book publishers, and 9 out of the 10 magazine publishers. There are more than 205 hospitals in the city.

There are more than 5,500 million vehicles in the city of São Paulo.

The São Paulo Metro (underground) transports more than 2.5 million people per day; the network has four lines, totalling 57.6 km (35.8 mi).

The city is served by 15,000 buses and 30,000 taxis (London has 20,000 taxis); the fleet of helicopters is the second biggest in the world (New York has the biggest one).

There are more than 5,500 street crossings with traffic lights.

The three airports in the city (Congonhas, Guarulhos and Campo de Marte) see 380,000 landings and take-offs per year. Congonhas is the busiest airport in Brazil. Guarulhos is the biggest airport in Latin America.

The Gross Product of the city of São Paulo reached R$ 263.2 bn in 2005, or US$ 102.4 bn; for conversion, the study used the average rate of 2005, US$ 1 = R$ 2.57. If the current rate, of about US$ 1 = R$ 1.80 were used, then the Product would be even bigger, about US$ 146 bn.

If the city of São Paulo were a country, its economy would be the 47th in the world, bigger than Egypt and Kuwait, about the same size as Hungary or New Zealand, about 85% of Israel. The economy of São Paulo would also be bigger than 22 of the American States, including Hawaii, Georgia and New Hampshire.

In 2005, the economy of São Paulo was 12.3% of Brazil. It is the second biggest in Brazil, 7% bigger than the State of Rio de Janeiro and 37% than the State of Minas Gerais. It is comparable to the size of Chile, and five times as bigger than Uruguay.

In 2005, the city of São Paulo collected R$ 90 billion in taxes, and the budget of the city spent R$ 15 billion; these figures show that São Paulo contributes to wealthiness distribution.

Other economic and financial information about the city of São Paulo

São Paulo is the biggest city in Americas and the third biggest city in the world, with 11 million inhabitants.

São Paulo has 1,500 bank branches. There are 70 shopping centers. Of all the international companies with business in Brazil, 63% have their head offices in São Paulo.

The Bolsa de Mercadorias e Futuros (Commodities and Futures Exchange) is the sixth biggest in the world, by number of contracts. In the Bolsa de Valores (Stocks Exchange) , R$ 6 billion (US$ 3.5 billion) change hands every day.

There are about 30,000 millionaires living in São Paulo, 60% of all millionaires in Brazil.

Every business day, half a million people go to 25 de Março (photo), a street of popular commerce in downtown. According to Mystery Shopping International, the Rua Oscar Freire is one of the eight most luxurious in the world. São Paulo has a car dealer specialized in Ferrari and Maserati.

In Brazil, there are only 20,000 km (12,500 miles) of aqueducts in Brazil, less than the 42,000 km (26,000 mi) in Mexico and much less than the 440,000 km (273,000 mi) in the USA.

However, the ethanol is gaining so much importance in Brazilian economy that Petrobras and the Government of São Paulo (São Paulo is the biggest producer of ethanol in Brazil) have signed a joint venture to build the first ethanol-duct in the world.

The ethanol duct would be about 1,150 km ( 715 mi) long. It would link the Southern extreme of the State of Goiás to the Port of São Sebastião in the coast of São Paulo, cutting through the Western end of Minas Gerais and all across the interior of São Paulo (see map).

Trucks will be used to move the ethanol from the mills to large tanks, which will feed the ducts. Pumping stations should be built every 200 km (125 mi) to keep the ethanol flowing, at an average speed of 3.6 km/h (2.2 mi/h). Click the image below to see a scheme of the ethanol duct.

Today, the transportation of alcohol is entirely made by trucks; Petrobras estimates that the duct could move a volume equivalent to the load of 1,000 trucks per day. The duct should be in operation by 2011, at a cost of US$ 1 billion; today, the cost of transportation is about R$ 130 (US$ 75) per 1,000 liters, and should drop to about R$ 40 (US$ 23).

Two of the most valuable paintings of the Museum were stolen: Pablo Picasso’s “Portrait of Suzanne Bloch” and Brazilian painter Candido Portinari’s “The Coffee Worker”; the pieces were estimated to value US$ 50 million.

The thieves acted swiftly; the cameras recorded the action, which lasted exactly three minutes, from 5h09 to 5h12 am. The Museum, the most important Museum of Arts in São Paulo and one of the most importants in the Southern Hemisphere, doesn’t have an alarm system; the thieves used a hydraulic jack to prise open the main door and a crowbar to smash a glass door.

The Police are investigating the images, but the camera lacks infra-red capabilities, which degraded the quality of the film; Interpol was called to help; Brazilian newspaper O Estado de São Paulo published the movie of the robbery of Museum of Arts of São Paulo.

The Police suspect that the crime was commited by hired professionals. The thieves knew the vulnerabilities of the security, and knew exactly which pieces to grab.

More info in English: Reuters.

Update January 9th 2008: the Police recovered the paintings. The Civil Police arrested two people and recovered the two paintings which had been stolen from MASP. The two men are ordinary thieves who, according to the Police, had already tryed to rob MASP before; because they were ordinary thieves, the Police suspects that they commited the crime by order of someone else, who is now being chased.

Acording to the article, on December 7th 2007, in the city of São Paulo, there was not one single occurrence of murdering; it was the first time since the decade of the 1950s that the city lived such a peaceful day.

More good news: the statistics say that the criminality has been declining in the city and in the State of São Paulo. From 1999 to date, the number of murders reduced by 79% in the capital city and by 69% in the State. Today, in the State of São Paulo, there are 11 murders per year for each group of 100,000 inhabitants (in 1999, there were 36 - see graph below), which compare to 39 murders in Rio de Janeiro and 22 for Brazil. São Paulo is about to reach the ratio of 10 murders by 100,000 inhabitants, which, according to Veja, is considered acceptable by the World Health Organization.

Besides murders, the number of thefts and violent robberies has also been decreasing since 2000 (since 1994, the same Party, the Social Democrats, have been governing the State). Veja gives special credit to Infocrim, a system inspired in the New York Police, which automatically shares every criminal record among all Police Stations in the capital, and is now being extended to other cities.

By analysing the data provided by Infocrim, the Police can trace the areas and times with higher occurrence of crimes, and can act more methodically. In Capão Redondo, the most violent zone of São Paulo city, saw drops of 75% in criminality after the Police started watching the points considered focuses of crimes.

By using Intelligence (data crossing, phone interception, police infiltration), the Police managed also to take control of the prisons.  Groups such as infamous PCC, which spread terror in the State in 2006, are now tamed, according to Secretary of Justice; and he also mentioned that the Government is investing in social actions, such as providing more medical and dental care, as well as health and birth control planning, to the population in the poorest areas of the city.