Roadmap to Reform: Building Sustainable Transit for Africa’s Cities

The paper examines the impact of colonial legacies and rapid urbanisation on African transportation, highlighting the contrast between South Africa's high-cost Gautrain and more inclusive BRT systems like Rea Vaya and MyCiTi. It identifies the dominance of informal paratransit, such as minibuses, as a critical gap in regulation and safety, noting high road fatality rates in Sub-Saharan Africa and Addis Ababa. The author advocates for a holistic approach combining infrastructure, travel subsidies, and the integration of informal networks, while cautioning against unchecked car ownership and conditional foreign aid.

• Colonial infrastructure in Africa was primarily designed for resource extraction, moving minerals from inland areas to coastal ports, rather than for general settlement, with Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe being exceptions.
• South Africa's Gautrain Rapid Rail, costing approximately R30 billion ($4.1 billion USD), succeeded in reducing travel time between Johannesburg and Pretoria but failed to serve low-income populations and former black townships like Soweto due to high costs and limited lines.
• Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems, including Rea Vaya and Cape Town's MyCiTi, are presented as affordable, scalable, and inclusive alternatives that combine rail efficiency with bus flexibility, though Rea Vaya has suffered from budgetary issues and construction delays.
• Informal 'paratransit' systems, specifically minibuses in South Africa which account for about 65% of commuter trips, fill gaps in government transport but cause congestion, violence, and safety risks. In 2016, road deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa averaged 26.6 per 100,000 residents, 32% above the global average; in Addis Ababa, pedestrians represented 88% of road fatalities from 2010 to 2015.
• To reduce social exclusion, the document suggests a holistic strategy including subsidising minibus taxi travel, regulating fare structures, improving public bus services, enhancing policing at hubs, and providing affordable housing near employment centres.

APA

Arastu, Y. (2025). Roadmap to Reform: Building Sustainable Transit for Africa’s Cities. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/research/roadmap-to-reform-building-sustainable-transit-for-africas-cities/

Chicago

Arastu, Yahya. Roadmap to Reform: Building Sustainable Transit for Africa’s Cities. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2025. https://saiia.org.za/research/roadmap-to-reform-building-sustainable-transit-for-africas-cities/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Arastu |first1=Yahya |title=Roadmap to Reform: Building Sustainable Transit for Africa’s Cities |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=8 February 2025 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/roadmap-to-reform-building-sustainable-transit-for-africas-cities/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{arastu2025roadmap, author = {Arastu, Yahya}, title = {{Roadmap to Reform: Building Sustainable Transit for Africa’s Cities}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/roadmap-to-reform-building-sustainable-transit-for-africas-cities/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }