Public transport as a driver of economic and social revitalisation in central business districts: the case of pinetown, ethekwini

Abstract

Public Transport in its various forms is the most widely used form of transportation by commuters within South Africa. It caters for the travel needs of up to 70% of commuters, and therefore plays a significant role in contributing to the economic vibrancy of the country. Within the South African context, public transport has significantly contributed to the progression of urbanisation. Major cities across South Africa depend on public transport to convey commuters to the urban centres daily, ensuring that these urban areas are easily accessible and well connected to their associated outlying regions. These urban centres have also been shaped by the presence and operation of public transport. A booming industry that has emerged is the informal trade sector, who depend on the public transport industry and patrons for their livelihood. In this way public transport plays a vital role in moulding the character and culture of urban areas. Ove the past two decades, urban areas have been in a state of decline. Factors such as overcrowding, poor maintenance, delays in the provision of new roads and buildings infrastructure, among other factors, has resulted in dilapidation of infrastructure, pollution, crime, traffic congestion, all working together to make urban centres extremely chaotic and unattractive environments to be in. As a result, major businesses pull out of the urban areas, urban areas become progressively more dysfunctional, becoming a greater financial burden to government departments. In spite of this, there are still thousands of commuters who use public transport to travel to these urban centres for their livelihoods. Public Transport therefore has the potential to be a conduit to derive economic and social revitalisation in such urban areas. The Pinetown CBD within eThekwini Municipality serves as an example of a oncethriving node which has significantly degenerated. As part of the urban decay, the public transport infrastructure within the Pinetown CBD also became severely dysfunctional and is in need of major reform. Through a public transport study undertaken by the eThekwini Transport Authority’s (ETA), the solutions that were identified not only provided an improved service and infrastructure response to the public transport sector, but had the potential to provide revitalisation for businesses within the CBD, as well as to bring reform to the informal trade industry. By presenting the findings from the Pinetown study, this paper will demonstrate the way in which public transport can drive economic and social revitalisation in CBDs.