Assessing the role of public transport-oriented development in promoting investment: the case of Johannesburg's Rea Vaya and the Louis Botha corridor of freedom

• Main Author: Ngidi, Zinhle Sinenhlanhla
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: 2020
• Subjects: Transit-oriented development; Transportation > South Africa > Johannesburg > Planning; City planning > South Africa > Johannesburg
• Online Access: Ngidi, Zinhle, (2019). Assessing the role of public transport-oriented development in promoting investment :the case of Johannesburg's Rea Vaya and the Louis Botha corridor of freedom, University of the Witwatersrand, https://hdl.handle.net/10539/29697; https://hdl.handle.net/10539/29697

A research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the Degree of Master of Commerce (Applied Development Economics) in the School of Economic and Business Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand === Transit Oriented Development (TOD) in practice dates back to the 1880s. The definition and concept were more recently coined by urban practitioner, Peter Calthorpe in the 1980s. The concept has evolved over time, however, the fundamentals remain universally accepted. TOD is a multidisciplinary tool that can be used for the achievement of social, economic and environmental benefits. It has been observed that the popularity of TOD as an urban transformation tool has increased internationally. The outcomes on the other hand have been varied depending on the unique features of the location where it is implemented. Johannesburg is one of South Africa’s pilot metropolitan areas for TOD. The Corridors of Freedom (CoF) initiative among other things aims to crowd in private sector investment into areas that are in much need of urban renewal. This paper probes the progress that has been made in achieving private sector investment in property development in the CoF between 2013 and 2017. Theories incorporating geographic and economic thought aid the contextualisation of TOD within the greater body of work within the field of development. Results show that there is private participation in the development of high-density, mixed use buildings. It is however argued that developments that have taken place so far rely heavily on the principles of property development as opposed to TOD principles. === NG (2020)