Paper presented at the 32nd Annual Southern African Transport Conference 8-11 July 2013 "Transport and Sustainable Infrastructure", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.
Travel is essential in people’s day to day lives. Through travel, people are able to access places, other people, goods and services that are separated across space and time.
Governments informed by the needs of the people invest funds in infrastructural development to facilitate efficiency in travel. This study focused on the travel needs and modal choices of informal workers in Kamukunji metalwork cluster in Nairobi. Data was
collected from a sample of 63 respondents through a field survey, travel diary and key
informant interviews. The study found that informal workers in Kamukunji had unique travel
patterns motivated by needs for social integration, commuting to work, sourcing raw
materials and supply of end products to customers. The travel modes used to meet these
needs were found to be specific to the travel purpose. Descriptive statistics, thematic
analysis and Chi-Square tests were used in data analysis. The study concludes that the
travel patterns and choices of informal workers in Kamukunji and the informal sector at
large impact on travel and transport use in Nairobi. This is important for the stakeholders
involved in planning and infrastructure development.
