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- Convenors:
-
Nadine Appelhans
(TU Berlin)
Sabine Baumgart (Technische Universität Dortmund)
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- Format:
- Panels
- Location:
- KH118
- Start time:
- 30 June, 2017 at
Time zone: Europe/Zurich
- Session slots:
- 1
Short Abstract:
Mass rapid transit (MRT) aims to improve traffic flows in African cities. Yet, further impact needs assessment. We explore MRT cases in the contexts of urban development to see if they promote inclusion. We ask how MRT links neighbourhoods, how it co-operates and how it affects local communities.
Long Abstract:
Mass rapid transit (MRT) projects- such as bus rapid transit, light rail or cable car projects in Lagos, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Kampala and Dar es Salaam - aim to improve traffic flows. These MRTs provide standardised service to all citizens boarding. They thereby stand in competition to growing fleets of private motor vehicles, while many residents continue to secure physical mobility across the city through walking, cycling or informal public transport. By placing responsibility for transport provision from the private and informal sector (back) into the hands of state control, the MRT projects are often seeking to substitute what has been described as "paratransit".
However, it has been critically questioned, which impact MRT projects have not only on existing transportation networks, but also on increasing the urban accessibility for low-income groups, based on the distribution of stages and affordability of fares.
Through contributions from case studies in African cities we seek to review MRT projects in the wider contexts of urban development. Beyond issues of congestion we explore if MRT projects can live up to the promise of furthering equity on the city scale by making mobility and thus access to places more inclusive. We ask how MRT projects link neighbourhoods of different socio-economic status and how they have to co-operate with other modes of transport to maintain criteria of affordability and reach. The panel will also include contributions on the impact of newly built MRT infrastructures on urban settings and how the change in connectivity has impacted on local communities.
Accepted papers:
Session 1Astrid Wood (Newcastle University)
Paper short abstract:
Across African cities, bus rapid transit, a bus-based mode of urban transport, has become one of the fastest growing transport models. This paper examines BRT as a transport product, a policy of transit-oriented development, and a symbolic, experiential and political practice.
Paper long abstract:
The global reproduction of bus rapid transit (BRT) - a rapid mode of urban public transport that promises the high-quality and speed of a rail system alongside the operating flexibility and low-cost of a bus network - has been tremendous in recent years, and with new systems launched annually across African cities, it is one of the fastest growing transport models of the 21st century. BRT systems are commended for improving mobility by reducing travel time and improving comfort and reliability; and its transformation into an international policy success is often attributed to its affordability, brief implementation phase and generous political payoffs. Yet the measure of success - the viability of the system - remains dubious in many cities. In practice, the measurement of success fluctuates over the years as the system opens, adjusts, improves, is abandoned, or simply does not reach the promised cost-to-benefit calculations. This paper examines BRT as a power-laden product of transport provision, a policy of transit-oriented development and devolution, and a symbolic, experiential and political practice. These arguments incorporate concepts of science and technology studies into policy mobilities to explain that BRT is more than just an imitation of the red busways in Bogota but a story of comprehensive, locally-driven change.
Zinette Bergman (University of the Witwatersrand) Manfred Max Bergman
Paper short abstract:
Based on the perspectives of Metrorail users in the Western Cape, South Africa we use the Motility framework to examine how poverty and inequality intersect with mobility access and what that means for sustainable mobility and mobility theory in Africa.
Paper long abstract:
There are many reasons why public transport in general, and trains in particular, are central to developing sustainable cities. They have a reduced carbon footprint, alleviate road congestion, and provide increased safety for passengers. In theory, they are convenient, accessible, and affordable, and they often form the core of sustainable mobility policies. Many African cities, however, are characterized by inequality, poverty, and exclusion, and train systems are poorly developed and maintained - if present at all. How does sustainable mobility apply to such contexts? In this study, we analyse the perspectives and imaginaries of Metrorail users in the Western Cape of South Africa, drawing on the Motility framework. Based on 30 interviews with Metrorail users, we explore how they experience access to mobility systems. We outline various interrelated service, infrastructure, and human-related challenges associated with accessing mobility options to examine how these contribute to shaping the boundaries of exclusion and mobility. By exploring how perspectives and imaginaries on mobility options in general, and trains in particular, connect to notions of sustainable mobility, we challenge well-established theories embedded in this field. In doing so, we aim to contribute to context-specific and culture-relevant research on sustainable mobility in Africa.
Sarah Charlton (University of the Witwatersrand)
Paper short abstract:
The ‘Corridors of Freedom’ concept underpins Johannesburg’s Bus Rapid Transit system, aspiring to mitigate persistent apartheid geographies. Property re-development along the bus route aims at inclusion, yet shortcomings in pro-poor housing signal potential displacements and unintended exclusions.
Paper long abstract:
Johannesburg's Bus Rapid Transit system is located within the 'Corridors of Freedom' (CoF) development concept, a programme of City-guided transformation of the built form and occupancy density along BRT routes to support the functioning and viability of the new bus system. Amongst other things this transport-orientated development attempts to counter the notorious spatial legacy of apartheid, still shaping the lives of many poor people living in less favourable localities. The programme's by-line is 'Re-stitching our City to create a new future', and envisions 'Rich and poor, black and white living side by side' in diverse housing options and typologies. The programme targets multiple actors, particularly private sector developers, to invest, build, and find development opportunities along the bus route through conversions of existing properties. Initiated under the African National Congress city administration and pro-poor in intention, there are emerging complexities in the realisation of the CoF vision. This paper uses the story of one mixed use building in a prime location along the central-city to Alexandra route of the CoF to reveal the potential for displacement of very poor residents and unintended, exclusionary consequences. The paper locates the discussion at the intersection of a pro-poor transport development and its ambitions, and the contestations and shortcomings surrounding well located low income housing, despite the country's massive state housing programme for the poorest of the poor.
Walter Alando
Paper short abstract:
This paper expands the conception of accessibility concept to embrace the barriers to accessibility for non-motorised modes. It develops a potential accessibility model to find the number of opportunities that can be reached given these barriers.
Paper long abstract:
Many sub-Saharan African cities have embarked on ambitious transport projects in the last 10 years to ease their access to destinations. These projects range from the expansion of road capacities to the prioritisation of higher capacity public transport vehicles. While these interventions have resulted in improved accessibility for motorised modes, similar benefits cannot be said to have accrued to users of non-motorised modes. The latter modes are typically used by the urban poor in this region. Inability of the current transport projects to address their accessibility concerns thus raises doubts about the adequacy of the current conception of accessibility concept to generate inclusive transport. This paper expands this conception of accessibility concept to embrace the barriers to accessibility for non-motorised modes. It specifically develops a potential accessibility model to find the number of opportunities that can be reached by different travel modes given the current transport conditions that generate these barriers. These conditions include narrow streets and dangerous intersections among others. The model is based on travel diary data obtained from 2,165 household members drawn from Kisumu, Kenya. Accessibility is modelled in terms of the time it takes to reach the destinations. Weights are assigned to the barriers to accessibility in accordance with the severity of these barriers as reported by the respondents. Results show that non-motorised modes are hindered the most by the current conditions of transport. The paper offers an objective basis for evaluating the ongoing transport projects for their inclusiveness of the non-motorised modes.