SPATIO-TEMPORAL MODELLING & THE NEW URBAN AGENDA IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA

Abstract

This paper presents the potentialities of spatio-temporal modelling in transforming South Africa’s previously marginalised townships. Using the Katlehong township in Ekurhuleni as a case study, the paper argues that the hitherto marginalised townships can benefit from a localised implementation of smart-city concepts as articulated in the Integrated Urban Development Framework. Instead of viewing townships as spaces of perpetual despair and hopelessness, the paper appreciates these areas as having the potential to benefit from new smart innovative planning approaches that form part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. So, the discussion identifies smart transportation modes such as bicycle-sharing, as well as Bus Rapid Transit Networks as critical in promoting mobility in and beyond townships, while contributing to spatial integration and transformation. Using geolocation data, the paper concludes that formerly marginalised townships such as Katlehong can and must form part of the emergent smart cities in South Africa.