Travel in South Africa, as in the rest of Southern Africa, is highly skewed by economic means. It is mainly dominated by walking and public transport, primarily among the poorer sectors of the population. Roads provide a mixture of first and third world traffic conditions with limited pedestrian facilities, especially in poorer areas. This creates variations in the public’s perception and there is a variation in awareness, as well as the capacity to cope with hazards. To date transport policies and expenditure have, however, been focussed on the provision and improvement of infrastructure that enables fast and efficient motorised transport, in keeping with developed economies and practices.
The overall aim of the research is to critically investigate the magnitude and characteristics of non-motorised transport provision in Cape Town, evaluating existing policies and their implementation strategies. Amongst others, the research will: attempt to identify the sources of data, the reliability of the data, as well as the levels of under-reporting; investigate how infrastructural measures, including a change in transport modes, can influence crashes in mixed use areas and how can these be measured; assess whether ex-ante studies via micro-simulation modelling can adequately model infrastructural changes by comparison to international pre and post studies; and analyse whether the results from the modelling exercise would be of help to decision/policy makers and whether they are transferable to other African cities.
Project leader: A/Prof Marianne Vanderschuren
Centre for Transport Studies, University of Cape Town
