MOBILIZING DEVELOPMENT

How To Make Transport Sustainable 22
and changing the way decisions are made to allow for
truly integrated policy making. It is therefore crucial that
capacity development and financial support, especially
at the municipal level, accompany the roll-out of
Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan requirements and other
integrated approaches.
Integrated approaches are crucial for effective freight
planning as well, through strategic placement of
shipping hubs, for instance, to reduce urban congestion
created by deliveries.
Intermodality
Intermodality is a key feature of integrated transport
systems and policy, and it is the principle underlying
the ‘Avoid-Shift-Improve’ approach. Transport systems
that are integrated to meet the needs of urban and rural
users—including the need to travel or move goods
the ‘last mile’— offer substantial efficiency increases. A
precondition of intermodality is the cooperation among
different transport operators, for example through
a metropolitan or regional transport authority as an
effective central institution.
In the long-range movement of freight and people,
it is important that standards and administrative
procedures are harmonized across countries, and
intermodal interfaces are smooth and efficient to
optimize connectivity. Whether a shipment is crossing
a national border, or a passenger wants to transfer from
an aircraft or ferry to train to car, the infrastructure and
Bus Rapid Transit System in Johannesburg
The designation of Johannesburg as one of the hosts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa provided the
impetus to improve public transport in the city, including through the first full Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system
in Africa. The system, Rea Vaya, was designed by the city administration to be both functional and attractive,
with pre-paid boarding, aesthetically-pleasing weather-protected stations, and buses running in designated
lanes. To promote multimodality, Rea Vaya is connecting to Gautrain’s dedicated bus link and rail system. In an
example of south-south cooperation, city planners also took study tours to Bogota, Colombia to learn from the
BRT experience in that city.
A central challenge in Rea Vaya’s development was resistance from owners of informal minibuses and taxi drivers,
but by including these groups through a taxi industry steering committee, the city encouraged them to become
critical stakeholders helping to find solutions together with the city. Taxi representatives also participated in the
Bogota study tours.
Rea Vaya was designed with a number of development objectives in mind, including enhanced economic
growth, poverty alleviation, sustainable development and good governance. Financed through a public-private
partnership approach, the direct economic returns of Johannesburg’s BRT system (initial Phase 1A), over the
period 2007-2026, are approximately US$143 million in net present value (NPV). The total cost was estimated
at US$749 million in NPV, and if considering wider benefits, the economic returns are estimated to be almost
US$900 million in NPV.
Connected to Recommendations: 1, 2, 4, 6, 10
The economic benefits of the Rea Vaya BRT system
(period 2007-2026)
Components of economic benefit Net present value
(US$ millions 2012)
Travel time savings 331
Improved road safety 268
Increased physical activity 141
Operating cost reduction 170
Travel time lost during construction -38
CO 2
emissions reduction 18
Total economic returns 892