Geographical Modelling of Transit Deserts in Cape Town

Herrie Schalekamp,Robert Cameron,Alexandra Newlands,Marianne Vanderschuren

doi:10.3390/su13020997

Abstract

The World Bank calculated South Africa’s 2018 Gini Coefficient to be 0.63, which made it the world’s most unequal country. Such inequality is perpetuated by land-use patterns still influenced by the apartheid past. The resulting urban form necessitates long travel distances, often relying on fragmented transit modes, each with their own geographical and temporal constraints. This study applies work on transit deserts in cities in the global north to Cape Town, aiming to assess the methodological transferability to the global south, and generating case study results. In the Cape Town case, the study first analyses transit deserts based on formal public transport supply (bus rapid transit, traditional bus and train), identifying that ten out of 18 traffic analysis zones were classified as transit gaps (some unserved demand), while three of these zones qualified as transit deserts (significant undersupply). Like its U.S. counterparts, excess supply is found near Cape Town’s city centre. In Cape Town, the transit gaps/deserts are partly filled by unscheduled minibus-taxis. When this informal public transport service is added, the transit deserts disappear; however, half of the transport analysis zones still qualify as having transit gaps. It is, therefore, concluded that informal public transit in Cape Town reduces the transit gap, but does not eliminate it.

Highlights

This paper summarises our findings in relation to whether transit deserts exist in one city in South Africa, how such deserts can be defined, and whether they might share similar traits and characteristics to transit deserts in other parts of the world
Our study aimed to address this gap by modifying the methodology to a South African context, where data availability can be problematic
This study set out to examine if the transit desert theory, as applied by Jiao and Dillivan [6] and Jiao [7], can be utilised outside of the United States

Summary

Introduction

The term was an adaptation of the concept of a “food desert,” [2,3,4], which is an area where there is limited or no access to fresh food. Transit deserts relate to experiences of limited or no access to public transport. The Martin Prosperity Institute [5] refers to Toronto’s inner suburbs as transit deserts, being underserved by the public transport system. Jiao and Dillivan [6] later defined transit deserts as “areas that lack adequate public transit service given areas containing populations that are deemed transit-dependent”. Defined as areas where transit demand is significantly greater than supply [7]

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Discussion

Conclusion