Geometrical review of the Sfax road network as a preliminary study to the installation of a tramway

Abstract

The city of Sfax is noted for being one of the most spead-out cities of Tunisia, and the demand for travel is intensified by the combination of population growth and range extension. Urban sprawl coupled with an inefficient public transport system has led to residents using individual means of transport rather than the public one (80 vs. 20%, respectively), generating thereby a remarkably aggravated congestion problem. To remedy this situation, the government has adopted a proactive policy that predominantly focuses on reform and modernization of the existing public transport sector and a rationalization system for private vehicles. The relevant authorities have also proposed installing tramways to provide a more competitive public transport system. However, it is not clear whether this latter strategy will contribute to amelioration or, inversely, aggravation of the congestion issue. The efficiency of such a tram network system depends strongly on the width of the roads allowing the use of private property for the tramway. In a preliminary study in which we used international standards for tramway sites, we assessed each of the roads required for the Sfax tram network, dividing these into three categories of sections, namely green sections with a capacity to accommodate a tramway site, red sections with no capacity to house a tramway site and yellow sections that need some structural changes to achieve the same characteristics as the green sections. This road classification provided a geometric map of the feasibility of the tramway network in Sfax and resulted in the identification of two unfavorable zones. Based on this study, construction of tramway system on private property would not be feasible from the geometric perspective in most parts of Sfax City.