Africa’s urban areas are projected to grow by 50% by 2030 according to the 15thedition of the African Economic Outlook. Urbanization at this rate comes with many challenges and opportunities, including an ever-growing urban social divide, whereby large percentages of urban populations lack basic access to the housing, services and jobs they need. Africa’s urban transport systems will determine, in large part, how easily low-income populations will be able to survive and advance in these environments. Urban transport problems, in the form of crash rates, travel time and service reliability, are considerable, but there are some positive developments in the non-motorized transport space that offer possible paths to improvement.

This special issue invites original, high-level papers that explore the mobility and access that low-income populations experience in African cities. We seek innovative multi-disciplinary perspectives on the travel experiences of low-income communities, and on the operations of the unique passenger transport services that have emerged in various parts of the continent. Papers should present original quantitative, case study or qualitative research, or advance theoretical debates relevant to the special issue theme. Papers should include up-to-date literature reviews and rigorous descriptions of the research method.

 

Key words

  • Accessibility
  • Informal transport
  • Social exclusion
  • Transport justice
  • Travel burden
  • Vulnerable road users
  • Walkability
  • Traffic safety

 

Key dates

Call for papers:                                                30 June 2018
Deadline for abstracts (1 - 2 pages):           15 September 2018
Deadline for articles:                                     15  January 2019
Publication:                                                     From January 2021

 

Editors

  • Professor Mark Zuidgeest (University of Cape Town, South Africa)
  • Professor Roger Behrens (University of Cape Town, South Africa)
  • Professor Christo Venter (University of Pretoria, South Africa)

Contact for questions: [email protected]