Tourist Mobilities in Cape Town: Unveiling Practices in the Post-apartheid City

Abstract

ABSTRACT The FIFA World Cup™ organised in 2010 in South Africa represents a mega-event because of the symbol of its location, as well as the constructions it implied. In a developing country where inequalities are sizeable, the need to provide transportation for thousands of visitors led to the adoption of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) urban model. This model served as a “catalyst” project by triggering a long-awaited reform of the transport system inherited from the apartheid era. Also, since 2010 most of the attention has been drawn on the impact of the BRT on the commutes of the local urban dwellers. The survey presented in this paper rather enlightens a field barely explored, namely the mobilities of tourists at the destination, in Cape Town. The findings reveal that restricted use of the MyCiti bus service by the tourists results from a contradiction specific to the context of the post-apartheid city.