TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

LIST OF FIGURES

ABBREVIATIONS

INTRODUCTION

NAIROBI CITY .................................................................................................................................. 5

PROBLEM STATEMENT .......................................................................................................... 6
RESEARCH QUESTIONS .......................................................................................................... 8
STUDY OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................................. 8
SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS ..................................................................................................... 8
LITERATURE REVIEW

10

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN URBAN FORM AND TRANSPORTATION .................................................... 10

TYPES OF URBAN FORM BY URBAN SPRAWL ................................................................................. 14
TRANSPORTATION AND URBAN STRUCTURE .................................................................................. 18
URBAN PUBLIC TRANSPORT ............................................................................................... 21
STOCKHOLM CITY ................................................................................................................. 31
THE URBAN FORM AND STRUCTURE OF STOCKHOLM .................................................................... 32
THE URBAN PUBLIC TRANSPORT ..................................................................................................... 33
URBAN TRANSPORT PERFORMANCE EVALUATION......................................................................... 38
THE NAIROBI CITY ................................................................................................................. 42
GENERAL ....................................................................................................................................... 42
NAIROBI URBAN STRUCTURE......................................................................................................... 43
NAIROBI PUBLIC TRANSPORT ........................................................................................................ 46
1

METHODOLOGY

50

DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION ...................................................................... 50

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

51

EMERGING ISSUES ................................................................................................................. 52

URBAN PLANNING AND URBAN TRANSPORT ................................................................................. 52
INSTITUTIONAL SETUP AND STAKEHOLDERS ROLE ........................................................................ 54
PUBLIC TRANSPORT GUIDELINES ................................................................................................... 55
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES ............................................................................................................ 56
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

57

URBAN TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY ............................................................................ 57

REFERENCES

60

LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Advantages and disadvantages of the various types of urban form................................ 17
Table 2: Public Transport Performance Indicators by various researchers .................................. 23
Table 3: Urban Public Transport Performance Indicators by Ministry of Transport in Ghana
(September 1998) .......................................................................................................................... 25
Table 4: Expected fatality rates for different vehicle ownership levels........................................ 26
Table 5: Expected public service provision in developing cities .................................................. 27
Table 6: Expected public transport performance in developing cities. ......................................... 27
Table 7: Expected public transport quality in developing cities ................................................... 28
Table 8: Roads provision in African cities ................................................................................... 29
Table 9: Expected vehicle ownership for different city categories............................................... 30
Table 10: Expected average public transport fares. ...................................................................... 30
Table 11: Urban travel - percentage of person trips by mode (including walk) ........................... 31
Table 12: Urban travel - percentage of person trips by mode (excluding walk) .......................... 31
Table 13: Population History of Nairobi ...................................................................................... 43

LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Stockholm Metro, Light Rail and Suburban Railways Lines Network ......................... 37
Figure 2: Map of Nairobi County showing the three districts and 8 constituencies ..................... 42
Figure 3: Major routes and Traffic in Nairobi .............................................................................. 44
Figure 4: Trips per Day by Destination ........................................................................................ 45
Figure 5: Nairobi city commuter train network map showing the already existing and proposed
new railway lines. ......................................................................................................................... 48

ABBREVIATIONS
NMT

Non Motorised Traffic

CBD

Central Business District

KURA

Kenya Urban Roads Authority

KRC

Kenya Railways Corporation

NCC

Nairobi City Council

BRT

Bus Rapid Transit

LRT

Light Rail Transit

US

United States

JICA

Japan International Cooperation Agency

Km

Kilometre

SL

Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (Stockholm Local Transit Company)

INTRODUCTION
Urban form is the physical shape and structure of a town or city. Different towns or cities have
historically adopted a particular or rather skewed to a certain pattern in which activity centres
have been placed with respect to one another. The urban form of a city influences the siting of
commercial centres, residential centres, offices, shopping malls, schools, recreation areas etc.
This pattern has a great significant impact on the movement of people and goods from one point
to another in the effort to maximize their opportunity cost.
The rapid urbanization in many countries over the past half century has been accompanied by
excessively high levels of concentration of the urban population in the cities. The result is large
population concentrated in zones depending on the activities various people are attracted to. The
spatial arrangement of activity centres has a direct influence on the generated trips and in
addition influences whether one walks or drives to the office. It influences how far local
residents must travel to reach neighbourhood markets and how long it takes to leave the city to
explore upcountry areas.
Normally, urban centres are major economical hubs in many countries. Thus efficient transport
systems are paramount to enhance mobility within the urban centre. However, the mobility of a
given urban area is largely influenced by the structure or form of the city. The urban form is
influenced by land use mix and population densities. In result we have residential areas,
education centres, recreation centres, shopping malls locations etc. The different land use
dictates the origins and destinations of the various trips and the purposes of the trips hence
having a direct impact on the transport network.
Urban areas have large mass that need to be moved from their origins to various destinations to
meet their respective purposes. The various modes commonly used are; private cars, NonMotorised Traffic, public transport on road, water, rail and air. In many cities mass transit has
been realized though rail and bus transit.
Nairobi City
Nairobi not only is the biggest city in Kenya and the capital city, but is also one of the most
important economic centers in East and Central African Regions. The Nairobi city accounts for
50 % of formal employment in Kenya and generates over 50% of GDP. (Nairobi Master Plan,
2014).
5

Population of Nairobi city was 800,000 in 1980 (Nairobi Master Plan, 2014) and mainly due to
population migration from rural area, the population grew to 3.1 million in 2009 (2009 Kenya
Population and Housing Census) and is expected to grow further. In addition, urban problems
such as perennial traffic congestion, expansion of slum area, and environment deterioration have
been left unsolved for a long time and are already causing negative impact on the economic
activities and daily lives of the people in Nairobi city. The entire area of Nairobi County is
approximately 700km2. (Nairobi Master Plan, 2014)
Nairobi city CBD places itself as a centre of attraction from various zones that are roughly
radially placed with respect the CBD. Several offices, recreation centres, shopping malls and
work stations are located at the core of CBD therefore mass movement to seek or offer different
services at the CBD. Thus, urban mobility is paramount to proper functioning of the city and
various modes of transport are put in place to meet the transportation demand.
Majority of Nairobians do not own cars and heavily rely on public transport or NMT modes for
their transportation needs. Generally the transport network of Nairobi is dominated by road
network that have main arterials converging to the CBD.

PROBLEM STATEMENT
a) Increase in population
Increased rural-urban migration to Nairobi as people search for a source of income among other
reasons such as accessibility to quality education has significantly increased the total population
of Nairobi and consequently the population density in most areas of the city. Increase in
population calls for more and better public transport services to move the majority of the
population to various destinations; work, school, business etc. However, due to inadequate public
transport, long queues are observed during peak hours as people wait for a bus or a matatu. The
situation is worsened by long waiting time and congestion on the roads leading to increase travel
time.

b) Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl has been witnessed in the city in the recent years as the cost of living increases and
in search of cheaper housing, the Nairobians are residing away from the city. The mushrooming
"towns'' have not been sited with reference to the Nairobi physical plan (Master Plan) since the
locations and sizes majorly have been determined by profit oriented developers and not based on
the planning regulations.
Urban sprawl has a direct impact on the trip lengths and travel time. The increase in trip length
makes NMT less attractive leaving public transport as the main mode to meet the transportation
needs of the people who do not own private cars. In addition, this has encouraged the use of
private vehicles which has largely contributed to the current congestion in the city more so
because the existing transport infrastructure has not be upgraded to match with the increasing
vehicle population. It is worth noting that increased use of private vehicles lead to high levels of
transport related air pollution (e.g. noise, air, vibrations) and increased traffic crashes.
c) Public transport largely operated by private sector
Public transport is provided to enhance mobility within a city hence enhancing the productivity
of the urban population. Therefore, public transport services should not be entirely provided with
the aim of maximising profits but should be provided as a social welfare service. In fact, the
public transport should be viewed as a right to citizens of a particular country. Hence the
government should have a goal of efficient public transport system not only in the towns but in
the whole country. The government should put in place policies, guidelines and regulations to
control public transport in the effort to provide efficient public transport.
Unfortunately, in Nairobi city and Kenya in general, the national and local government have very
little control over provision and performance of public transport. This has been left on the hands
of profit oriented private investors. At a glance, the public transport in Nairobi is characterised
by; unavailability, unreliable, irregular schedules (if any), unaffordable, unsafe, uncomfortable
and poor customer care.

Traffic congestion in Nairobi

Unplanned residential developments in Nairobi

(Source: http://www.jambonewspot.com)

Source: Baraka Mwau

RESEARCH QUESTIONS
i.

How has Nairobi urban form influenced the transport infrastructure?

ii.

What are the performance indicators for public transport in urban areas?

iii.

What is the current situation of Nairobi public transport performance?

iv.

What are the emerging issues in Nairobi public transport?

STUDY OBJECTIVES
i.

To determine how urban form has influenced the Nairobi transport infrastructure

ii.

To outline the performance indicators for urban public transport

iii.

To establish the current performance of the public transport in Nairobi.

iv.

To outline the current emerging issues in relation to public transport in Nairobi

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS

The study area of this research is the Nairobi city, the capital city of Kenya. The study has
focussed on public transport on road and rail but mostly skewed to the road transport.
8

The study does not analyse the actual volumes of traffic demand in Nairobi based on the urban
form. For instance, the traffic demand in terms of volume with respect to population density of a
given area has not been established. The study does not include transport provided to public by
various institutions such as schools, churches and work places though they also contribute to
meeting the public transport needs in Nairobi just like many cities.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Urban form can be defined as the spatial pattern of human activities at a certain point in time
(Anderson et al., 1996). It is a term used to describe the physical elements within a city. It refers
to the arrangement, function and aesthetic qualities of the design of buildings and streets, which
overlay the land use and transport system (Mead et al, 2006).
Relationship between urban form and Transportation
Urban form impacts modal choice as measured by indicators such as vehicle mode share,
distances travelled, frequency of trips and vehicle ownership. This arises from the arrangement
or locations of residential areas or activity centers such as offices, market stalls, education
centres, recreation centres among others. The land use of a given urban centre defines the urban
form, which dictates how best the society utilizes their land. This includes the land apportioned
for use by the transportation systems e.g. roadways, stations, walkways.
Bento et al (2005) considered the effects of urban form on modal choice and vehicle travel. The
author found that population centrality, job housing balance (as measured by the ratio of jobs to
residents within a particular suburb), city shape and road density had statistically significant
effects on the distance travelled by vehicle and smaller effects on vehicle mode share. While the
impacts of individual urban form attributes on transport outcomes are relatively modest, their
cumulative impacts may be quite significant. By extension, urban form can have large impacts
on the use of private transport, public transport and walking/cycling.
Higher density and proximity to public transport was found to have significant effects on vehicle
ownership. Their results suggested that the impacts of urban form are likely to be a combination
of direct and indirect effects. That is, certain urban forms directly reduce the need for vehicle
travel which in turn contributes to lower vehicle ownership hence increasing the need of public
transport availability.
A wide variety of urban form attributes have impact on transport outcomes. Those which emerge
most consistently include:

local accessibility; density and mix of immediate land uses

job - housing balance; the ratio of jobs to residents within an area

10

regional centrality; proximity to regional population/employment opportunities

street network; the structure, block-size, and amenity associated with the street network

land use engagement; the degree to which adjacent land uses engage with each other

Generally, urban form can be classified in various dimensions, however the key metrics are;
settlement size, density, land use mix, connectivity (road network type), and proximity to
transport networks among others, (Dominic Stead and Stephen Marshall). These dimensions
measure different aspects of urban form and structure and each dimension impacts on urban
development differently. This allows for a comparison of magnitudes across different factors and
metrics.
a) Settlement Size
The size of settlement affects the range of local jobs and services that can be supported and
influences the range of public transport services which can be provided. Thus small settlements
that are unable to support a large range of services and facilities may force local residents to
travel longer distances in order to access the services and facilities that they require. Very large,
centralised settlements may on the other hand lead to longer travel distances as the separation
between homes and the urban centre becomes large. Large settlements with a very large range of
jobs and services may also attract people living long distances away to travel to them. These
factors may all influence travel patterns. Banister (1996) argues that a diversity of services and
facilities requires a population size of at least 10,000. Barton et al. (1995) share similar views on
settlement size thresholds.
It is worth noting that the relationship between settlement size and travel patterns is unlikely to
be simple due to the interplay of competing factors. Research by Gordon et al, (1989a) shows no
easily identifiable relationship between urban population size and modal choice. In a study of
commuting patterns in the ten largest urbanised areas in the United States, the proportion of car
journeys was found to be least in New York which has the largest population of the areas studied
and highest in Detroit which has the sixth largest population of the areas studied.
b) Urban density
Urban density is the measure of an urban unit of interest (e.g., population, employment,
and housing) per area unit (e.g., block, neighbourhood, city, metro area, and nation). There are
11

many measures of density, the three common measures are population density (i.e., population
per unit area), built-up area density (i.e., buildings or urban land cover per unit area), and
employment density (i.e., jobs per unit area).
Much of the research into land use and travel patterns has focused on the relationship between
population density and travel patterns. ECOTEC (1993) put forward four reasons why population
density may be linked to travel patterns. Firstly, higher population densities widen the range of
opportunities for the development of local personal contacts and activities that can be maintained
without resort to motorised travel. Secondly, higher population densities widen the range of
services that can be supported in the local area reducing the need to travel long distances.
Thirdly, higher density patterns of development tend to reduce average distances between homes,
services, employment and other opportunities which reduce travel distance. Fourthly, high
densities may be more amenable to public transport operation and use and less amenable to car
ownership and use which have implications for modal choice.
c) Land use mix
Land use mix refers to the diversity and integration of land uses (e.g., residential, park,
commercial) at a given scale. With density, there are multiple measures of land use mix,
including; the ratio of jobs to residents, the variety and mixture of amenities and activities, and
the relative proportion of retail and housing.
The mixing of land uses affects the physical separation of activities and is therefore a
determinant of travel demand. Some evidence suggests that the mixing of land uses is not as
important as density in influencing travel demand, (Owens, 1986; ECOTEC, 1993). Nevertheless
the level of mixed use may contribute to travel demand particularly through the decentralisation
of less specialised employment (ECOTEC, 1993). The mixing of land uses is commonly
measured using job ratio, the ratio of jobs in the area to workers resident in that area.
d) Connectivity (Road Network type)
Connectivity refers to street density and design. Common measures of connectivity include
intersection density or proportion, block size, or intersections per road kilometre (Cervero and
Kockelman, 1997). Where street connectivity is high, characterized by finer grain systems with
smaller blocks that allow frequent changes in direction, there is typically a positive correlation
12

with walking and thereby less pollution. The form or structure of an urban area may be
characterised to some extent by the pattern of its road network. Road networks may be described
using qualitative labels for their overall pattern or by descriptions based on some component
properties. Qualitative labels can give a reasonable intuitive impression of network shape (e.g.
grid, radial)
Fleming and Pund (1994) report higher bus occupancy (implying a higher proportion of bus use)
in networks which allow more direct access to public transport. However, Messenger and Ewing
(1996) report that road network design had no apparent effect on bus use. Elsewhere, Ewing
(1996) reports finding no relationship between transit use and street network design after
controlling for other variables such as urban density and service frequency. Ewing also notes
that grid-like patterns can be more transit friendly to the extent that they may allow greater
penetration of an area by transit services.
Ewings study considered to what extent various urban features might be regarded as being
essential or highly desirable in terms of contributing to pedestrian and transit friendly design.
Among the essential characteristics were short to medium length blocks (relating to network
permeability) and continuous sidewalks (relating to the connectivity of the pedestrian network),
while having a grid-like street network was considered highly desirable. Crane and Crepeau
(1998) cast doubt on whether the grid pattern has any significant effect on car or pedestrian
travel. Indeed, Crane (2000) points out that, to the extent that grids greater connectivity offers
shorter trips, trip frequency may be expected to increase - a finding echoing results of modelling
work by McNally and Ryan (1993).
e) Proximity to Main Transport Networks
The proximity to transport networks also influences travel patterns and consequently transport
energy consumption. Better access to major transport networks particularly road and rail
networks increases travel speeds and extends the distance which can be covered in a fixed time.
Major transport networks can be a powerful influence on the dispersal of development; both
residential and employment development. The proximity to major transport networks may lead
to travel patterns characterised by long travel distances and high transport energy consumption.
Headicar and Curtis (1994) report that the proximity to major transport networks has a
substantial effect on work travel distance. They conclude that the proximity to either a motorway
13

or a main road is associated with longer travel distances and a higher proportion of car journeys.
They also report that the proximity to a railway station is associated with long distance
commuting but fewer car journeys. Kitamura et al. (1997) report that the distance from home to
the nearest bus stop and railway station affects the modal share.
The proportion of car journeys increases and the proportion of non-motorised journeys decrease
with increasing distance from the nearest bus stop; the proportion of rail journeys increases with
increasing distance from the nearest railway station. Cervero (1994) shows how the proportion of
rail journeys decreases with increasing distance from the railway station. Residents living within
500 feet (approximately 150 metres) of a railway station in California typically use rail for
approximately 30 per cent of all journeys. The further the distance from the railway station, the
lower the proportion of rail journeys is made. Residents living at a distance of around 3,000 feet
(approximately 900 metres) from the nearest railway station are likely to make only about half
the number of rail journeys than residents living within 500 feet of a railway station. Cervero
reports that this pattern of rail use is similar in Washington, Toronto, Edmonton and California.
Types of Urban Form by Urban Sprawl
Urban form and structure are the patterns and spatial arrangements of land use, transportation
systems, and urban design elements, including the physical urban extent, layout of streets
and buildings, as well as the internal configuration of settlements (Lynch, 1981; Handy, 1996).
The various development forms are outlined below.
a) Linear Strip Development
Also known as ribbon or strip development, it is characterized by concentration of development
(production, residence, commerce and service) along both sides of major transportation routes
such as roads, navigable rivers or other form of transport network. This form resembles what
Kevin Lynch refers to as the Urban Star which is characterized by a strong urban core with
secondary centres of moderate densities, distributed along main radials roads. There are no
dominant centres; everyone has equal access to services, jobs, and the open land.
Navi Mumbai city presents a good example of a linear urban form. The city is constrained by sea
at south, east and west thus limited land for development. London and Stockholm exhibit a linear
urban form.
14

S
Strip/Linear
Developmennt

Urban Star

Source: http://www.aboutcivil.orrg/urban-landd-use-patternns

dal Urban Form:

F
b) Multi-Nod
n
urban form redirrects develoopment awaay from the urban coree or city centre towardd
Multi nodal
identifieed urban grrowth areass or nodes. The major centre (thee city centree) provides specializedd
facilitiees and serviices to its nodes
n
and acts
a as it exxternal linkaage to otherr centres off the city orr
municippality. The nodes suppport the major centtre as its captive maarket whilee providing
g
neighboourhood faccilities and services
s
to its
i area of innfluence.
Under the centric and nodall form, a number
n
of additional mixed-use growth areeas will bee
developped outside the existingg centre of developmen
d
nt. Radial an
nd circumfeerential dev
velopment iss
closely related to nodal
n
centrral type devvelopment. It
I shows a developmennt channel fanning outt
from a given centrre where pooints of acttivities are iinterconneccted by radiial and circcumferentiall
road systems whichh are potenttial developpment corriddors. Rome has a multiicentred urbban form.

Soource http://w
www.aboutccivil.org/urbaan-land-usepaatterns:

Source:w
www.slideshhare.net/townnplanning3

15

c) Concentricc Urban Foorm

This fo
orm reflectss an outwarrd expansio
on of urban
n developm
ment from thhe city cen
ntre or coree
induced
d by the con
nstruction of
o new circu
umferentiall and radial roads. Thee form patteern matchess
the Corre City of K
Kevin Lynch
h which hass the uniquee characterisstic of conccentrating development
d
t
into onee continuouus body orig
ginating from
m the centrre or core aiiming to maaximize land use in thee
city cen
ntre to provide more op
pen space outside.
o
This urban form
m redirects future deveelopment in
n
and aro
ound the cityy centre, ex
xtending to the adjoiniing areas (w
which couldd be rural). As a result,
the direection of grrowth enlarrges the urb
ban core. N
New Delhi and Washiington DC are skewed
d
towardss concentricc urban form
m.

www.aboutccivil.org/urbaan-landSoource: http://w

Sourrce:www.sliddeshare.net/toownplanningg3

use-patterns:

d) Grid Form
m
The grid form is made
m
up of rectangularr blocks deffined by parrallel and inntersecting streets. Thee
o plots an
nd/or structures, but conflict orr
simplicity of thiss layout prrovides acccessibility of
movem
ment could arrise due to numerous
n
in
ntersectionss.
San Fraancisco wass designed to
t accommo
odate outrag
geous numb
ber of peoplle that camee to the city
y
during the
t Gold Ruush. The ciity was laid out in a grrid pattern imposed
i
on a city of hills
h
built on
n
the end of a peninssula. New York
Y
presentts a grid urb
ban form.

16

Grid Development form

Source: http://www.aboutcivil.org/urban-land-use-patterns:
Table 1: Advantages and disadvantages of the various types of urban form
Type of urban Advantages
form
High accessibility
Linear / Star

Multi-Nodal

Concentric
/Radial

Grid

Disadvantages

Very sensitive to blockage

Adaptability to linear growth
Requires control of growth
Useful along the limited edge.
Lacks focus
The choice of connection or of
direction of movement is much
less.
Optional locations for focal Depends on stability to key
activities and system terminals
points
Good psychological orientation
Potential accessibility problems
Adaptability to existing conditions Tendency to dilute focal
activities
A direct line of travel for centrally Central congestion
directed flows
Local flow problems
Economies of a single centralised Difficult building sites
terminal or origin point
High accessibility
Requires flow hierarchies
minimum disruption of flow
limited in its adaptability to the
terrain
expansion flexibility

potentially monotonous
excellent
psychological
orientation
adaptability to level or moderately
rolling terrain

Source: Author based on the literature review

17

Example of cities
Navi Mumbai
Stockholm
London

Rome

New Delhi
Washington
DC
San Francisco
New York

Transportation and Urban Structure

Urban spatial structure is the set of relationships arising from urban form and the underlying
movements of goods and people. The urban form and its spatial structure are articulated by two
structural elements; nodes and linkages.

Source: Transport, Urban form and Land use, (unknown author)

Rapid and expanded urbanisation occurring around the world involves an increased numbers of
trips in urban areas. Cities have traditionally responded to growth in mobility by expanding the
transportation supply; by building new highways and/or transit lines. In the developed world,
that has mainly meant building more roads to accommodate an ever-growing number of vehicles
therefore creating new urban structures. Several urban spatial structures have accordingly
emerged with the reliance on the automobile being the most important discriminatory factor.
Four major types can be identified at the metropolitan scale.
a) Type I - Completely Motorised Network
Characterised by low to average land use densities. This automobile-oriented city assumes free
movements between all locations. Public transit has a residual function while a significant share
of the city is occupied by structures servicing the automobile, notably highways and large
parking lots. Most activities are designed to be accessed with an automobile. This type of urban
structure requires a massive network of high capacity highways to the point that urban efficiency
is based on individual transportation. Secondary road converges at highways along which small
18

centres are located, notably nearby interchanges. This system characterises recent cities in a
North American context where urban growth occurred in the second half of the twentieth
century, such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, Denver and Dallas.
b) Type II - Weak Centre
These cities are characterised by average land use densities and a concentric pattern. The central
business district is relatively accessible by the automobile and is the point of convergence of the
transit system which tends to be under-used and requiring subsidies. The urban area cannot be
cost effectively serviced with the transit system, so services are often oriented along major
corridors.
In many cases, ring roads favour the emergence of a set of small centres at the periphery notably
at the convergence of radial lines, some of them effectively competing with the central business
district for the location of economic activities. This system is often related to older cities which
emerged in the first half of the twentieth century, such as Melbourne, San Francisco, Boston,
Chicago and Montreal and were afterwards substantially impacted by motorisation.
c) Type III - Strong Centre
Characterises cities having a high land use density and high levels of accessibility to urban
transit. There are thus limited needs for highways and parking space in the central area where a
set of high capacity public transit lines are servicing most of the mobility needs. The productivity
of the urban area is thus mainly related to the efficiency of the public transport system. The
convergence of radial roads and ring roads favours the location of secondary centres where
activities that could no longer able to afford a central location converge.
This system characterises cities having important commercial and financial functions and having
grown in the 19th century, such as Paris, New York, Shanghai, Toronto, Sydney and Hamburg.
d) Type IV - Traffic Limitation
Represents urban areas that have efficiently implemented traffic control and modal preference in
their spatial structure. Commonly, the central area is dominated by public transit. They have a
high land use density and were planned to limit the usage of the automobile in central areas for a
variety of reasons such as to preserve its historical character or to avoid congestion.

19

Through a "funnel effect, the capacity of the road transport system is reduced as one gets closer
to the central area. Public transport is used in central areas while individual transportation takes a
greater importance in the periphery. Between suburbs and the central city are places of interface
between individual (automobile) and collective transportation or between low capacity collective
transportation (bus) and high capacity collective transportation (metro, rail).
Several cities are implementing this strategy such as through congestion pricing as it keeps cars
from the central areas while supporting the bulk of the mobility in the suburbs. This system
typifies cities having a long planning history favouring public transit particularly in socialist
economies. London, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vienna and Stockholm are good examples of this
urban transport structure.

20

Type IV: Traffic Limitation

Source: Transport, Urban form and Land use, (unknown author)

URBAN PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Transport is the backbone of urban life. Mobility and accessibility provided by the transport
systems have been playing a major role in shaping cities by influencing the location of social and
economic activity, the form and size of cities, the style and pace of life by facilitating trade,
permitting access to people and resources and enabling greater economies of scale worldwide
and throughout history (Zuidgeest 2005).
Public transport refers to a collection of modes of transport which are available to the public for
use irrespective of the ownership (White, 2000). This modes of transport include; road based
transport, rail transport including metro and tram systems, water transport and air transport for
longer journey. Road vehicles used for the provision of public transport services include buses,
paratransit vehicles, taxis, human and animal powered vehicles, (Ile 2005). Among these modes,
the conventional buses are the most common public transport mode in developing countries in
view that they offer relatively low running costs, route flexibility and permeability into town and
city centres, (Davidson & Knowles, 2006).

21

The high density of activities in urban areas makes it possible and necessary that high capacity
modes be used due to economies of scale. Moreover, public modes provide services for all
persons, thus cities need to benefit from public transportation services which offer greater
mobility for the entire urban population. However, in many developing countries, the advantage
of urban is not realized due to a variety of challenges with the urban public transport. Some of
these problems are; rapid increase of population, increase of motor vehicle population, usage
causing congestion and pollution, lack of resources and poor management.
Therefore, for efficient urban public transport, performance evaluation is not a choice to the
given authority or government agency of the given city or town. The performance measure
criteria chosen should thus be a tool(s) to evaluate urban public transport system condition, level
of service and safety provided to customers based on economic, environmental and community
policy goals. They should also evaluate the day-to-day performances for strategic management,
analysis of options and trade-offs. Performance measures also provide information for decision
on how to allocate resources and help to prioritize improvements to the neediest areas.
Performance measures chosen can be objective or subjective, however for a comprehensive
evaluation geared to aid in decision making objective measures presents a stronger case.
Measures such as customers' comfort are difficult to quantify and therefore are often
qualitatively expressed.
Performance evaluation results to particular indicators are important for the following reasons:i.

To clearly establish the performance of the transport system and in particular identify
where, how and why it is failing.

ii.

To help identify possible remedial actions and priorities for implementation.

iii.

To provide a base-line against which to monitor the impact of remedial actions in

particular and trends in general.

iv.

To provide basic data for longer term strategic planning.

The relevance and appropriateness of each measure depends on the context of analysis. Though,
as Iles (2005) reckons, indicators have to be clearly and unambiguously defined. Various
researchers have proposed various classifications of the transit performance measures, some are
more schematic, and others more articulate as tabulated below.
22

Table 2: Public Transport Performance Indicators by various researchers

Researchers

Indicators

TCRP Report 88
(Transportation
Research Board,

Proposes a classification which considers indicators of;

cost-efficiency- defined as the measure of service output compared to unit of input
(cost)
cost-effectiveness- defined as the measure of outcome compared to unit of input in

2003a)

terms of cost, and

service-effectiveness- which is the measure of outcome compared to unit of input in
terms of service
According

to

There are three general types of performance indicators:

measures of service quality which reflect the quality of service experienced by users

Litman (2009)

indicators of outcomes which reflect outcomes or outputs

indicators of cost efficiency, which reflect the ratio of inputs (costs) to outputs (desired
benefits)
Dalton

et

(2000)

al.

More oriented to the agencys point of view, considers input, output, or outcome
measures
Input measures look at the resources dedicated to a program (e.g. spent money,
kilometres of pavement placed)
output measures look at the products produced (e.g. materials consumed, kilometres of
lanes)
outcome measures look at the impact of the products on the goals of the agency (staff
time consumed, hours of bus service added, reduced travel time)
outcome measures are preferred because they directly relate the agencys strategic goals
to the results of the activities undertaken to achieve them; however, these measure be
evident until months after product delivery and can be difficult to define

Meyer (2000)

Classifies the performance indicators into three more comprehensive categories.

first category is represented by general performance indicators such as service area
population, passenger trips, vehicle kilometres and hours, and so on
The second category is represented by the effectiveness measures including the
following subcategories: service supply (passenger trips per capita, passenger trips per
hour); quality of service (average speed, average headway, number of incidents);

23

availability (weekday span of service, route kilometres per square kilometre).

The third category includes efficiency measures divided into: cost efficiency (operating
expenses per passenger trip, operating expenses per revenue hour); operating ratios
(local revenue per operating expenses); vehicle utilization (vehicle kilometres per peak
vehicle, vehicle hours per peak vehicle); labour productivity (passenger trips per
employee); energy use (vehicle kilometres per km-h); fare.
Vuchic (2007)

Proposes an enough comprehensive classification of performance indicators

transportation quantity or volume (number of vehicles or fleet size, fleet capacity,
number of lines and network length, annual number of passengers)
system and network performance (intensity of network service, average speed on a
transit system)
transportation work and productivity (annual vehicle-kilometres, annual spacekilometres, annual passenger-kilometres)
transit

system

efficiency

indicators

(vehicle-kilometres/vehicle/year,

passengers/vehicle-kilometres, daily passengers/employee, vehicle-kilometres/kilowatthour)

consumption rates and utilization indicators (operating cost/passenger, operating
cost/vehicle-kilometre, scheduled vehicles/fleet size)
Carter

and

Lomax (1992)

structured the performance indicators in six categories;

cost efficiency (cost per kilometre, cost per hour)
cost effectiveness (cost per passenger trip, ridership per expense)
service utilization/effectiveness (passenger trips per kilometres, passenger trips per
hour)
vehicle utilization/efficiency (kilometres per vehicle)
service quality (average speed, vehicle kilometres between accidents)
labour productivity (passenger trips per employee, vehicle kilometres per employee)

A report for Ministry of Roads and Transport in Ghana proposed performance indicators for
urban transport in developing countries covering the following;

Quality, quantity, effectiveness and efficiency of transport provision

Demand for transport

24

Price of transport

In the report it is stated that for completeness, a measure of the environmental pollution resulting
from city transport should also be included but at present few cities have the means for
monitoring this. The proposed performance indicators for urban transport are outlined below.
Table 3: Urban Public Transport Performance Indicators by Ministry of Transport in
Ghana (September 1998)
Indicator

Purpose

Description

Target

Road

To

accidents

magnitude of road vehicle) and percentage change of

gauge Total injury (absolute and per Accident rate no worse than peer group

safety problem

over time

similar

cities,

and

positive,

sustained and significant downward

trend.

Passenger

To

determine Number

service

quantity,

of

public

transport Numbers should be comparable with

quality vehicles/seats (absolute and per other similar cities; trend should not be

and trends in use capita)

negative.

of public transport Weighted average flow of public No specific target; for monitoring
transport vehicles on inner/outer only.
city roads.

Waiting times no worse than 20 min in

Weighted average waiting times peak in high frequency routes; trend

at key sites.

should not be negative.

Weighted average journey times Overall journey time should not be

on key routes
Roads

To

performance

level

more than 3 hours per day.

determine Road kilometres(absolute and per Numbers should be comparable with

of unit area)

congestion

Weighted

other similar cities; trends should not

average

vehicular be negative.

speeds on inner/outer roads during Inner city roads should have peak hour
peak.
Weighted

speeds in excess of 10kmph; trend

average

peak

hour should not be negative

flows on main corridors

Vehicular

To

fleet

growth in demand

No specific target, for monitoring only

indicate Number of vehicles (absolute and No specific target, for monitoring only
per kilometre of road and per
capita)

Transport

To indicate trends Average public transport fares for No specific target, for monitoring only

25

prices

in

cost

of fixed distances.

transport

Price of fuel
Average price of vehicles

Modal

To

choice

relative

indicate Number of vehicles by type

importance

(absolute and per capita)

and Proportion of trips undertaken by

development

of different modes of transport.

different modes

Source: Ministry of Transport in Ghana (September 1998)

a) Road Accidents
Accident statistics for individual cities are not readily available and hence comparative material
is based on nationally reported data. Country fatality data have a very wide range, partly
reflecting real differences as well as differences due to the problems of accurate record keeping.
The majority of developing countries have fatality rates which lie within the range of 10 to 100
fatalities per 10,000 vehicles while most developed countries have fatality rates within the range
1 to 10 fatalities per 10,000 vehicles.
Research in the UK suggests that fatality rates decline with increasing vehicle ownership but this
relationship is less certain in developing countries (Ghee et al, 1997). Even so, it might be
expected that the inverse relationship, though less stable, still applies. Thus countries with low
vehicle ownership levels (say below 100 vehicles per I0, 000 population) will be likely to have
the highest fatality rates. As an initial benchmark, (which requires further refinement), the
following norms were suggested by Ministry of Roads and Transport-Ghana, 1998.
Table 4: Expected fatality rates for different vehicle ownership levels.
Vehicle Ownership

Expected fatality rate

< 100 vehicles per 10,000 population

50 - 150 fatalities per 10,000 vehicles

> 100 vehicles per I0,000 population

I0 - 50 fatalities per 10,000 vehicles

Analysis also shows that countries should expect a 6 - 7% reduction in fatality rate for a 10%
increase in vehicle ownership. This 'natural' improvement in fatality rates can be taken as the
minimum level of improvement that should be targeted.

26

b) Public transport availability

The amount of public transport in use in a city may be measured by the numbers of vehicles
providing public transport service or to take account of the varying size of vehicles or the
number of spaces on offer. These indicators of provision should be normalised with respect to
population. Both of these indicators vary with city size and there is some evidence that larger
cities have disproportionately higher provision of public transport per head of population,
(Ministry of Roads and Transport, Ghana).
Table 5: Expected public service provision in developing cities
City size

Public transport vehicles per Public transport spaces per

1000 population

1000 population

<1 million

10-20

200-1000

1-5 million

20-40

1000-4000

>5 million

40-100

4000-10000

Indicators of public transport provision can be further refined with indicators of the efficiency of
operations and the service quality offered to the travelling public.
A World Bank publication (Armstrong-Wright and Thifiez, 1987) developed both operational
performance and service quality indicators for urban public transport service, some of which are
reproduced below. Some additional material has been made to the performance indicators to give
information on para-transit.
Table 6: Expected public transport performance in developing cities.
Passenger volumes per vehicle: passengers per day
shared taxi

150- 250

minibus (10 - 20 seats)

350-650

medium bus (80 - I00 spaces)

1,000 -1,500

large bus (>100 spaces)

1,500 -2,400

Bus utilisation: kms per day

shared taxi

50- 100

minibus

100- 150

medium/large bus

210-260

27

Table 7: Expected public transport quality in developing cities

Waiting time at bus stops
average

5 - 10 minutes

maximum

10 - 20 minutes

Walking distance to bus stops

dense urban areas

300- 500m

low-density urban areas

500- 1000m

Interchanges on journey to work

average

0-1

maximum

Journey time on journey to work

average

1.0 - 1.5 hours

maximum

2.0 - 3.0 hours

Journey speed of buses

dense areas in mixed traffic

10 - 12 kmph

bus-only lane

15 - 18 kmph

low-density areas

25 kmph

Travel expenditure
household expenditure as % of household income

10

c) Roads performance
Comparative data on urban roads provision is very limited. The first Sub-Saharan Africa
Transport Programme (SSATP) Report on 'A Transport Database for Sub-Saharan Africa'
(Studnicki-Gizbert and Heads, 1992) provided data for four African cities which present a range
of 0.47 - 1.34 kilometres of urban roads per 1,000 population. Of this amount between 50 - 55%
was paved and between 19 - 26% was in 'good condition'. There is no indication from this
evidence as to how roads provision may vary with city size, nor is there any indication of the
intensity of roads use which might show, for example, the amount of roads operating at different
service levels or vehicle speeds. Another World Bank (1991) document suggests an overall
average for Africa of 0.67 kms of urban roads per 1,000 population.

28

Given the paucity and comparative data, and until further information becomes available, the
norms which will be used are as given above by the SSATP Report.
Table 8: Roads provision in African cities
Road km per 1,000 population

% paved

% in good condition

0.47 - 1.34

50 - 55

19 - 26

Peak hour vehicle speeds, traffic flows and vehicle-capacity ratios provide measures of the use of
and congestion on the roads. Benchmark speeds for different types of main road are: central area
roads 10 -15 kmph, outer radials 15 - 25 kmph. Speeds which fall below these benchmarks are
indicative of poor roads provision, and/or poor traffic control and management.
d) Vehicle fleet
While national motorisation levels are quite well recorded, rates for cities are not. Thus, for
example, sub-Regions of Africa have the following average vehicle ownership levels for 1988:
Table 7. Current regional African vehicle ownership levels.
Sub-Region

GNP per capita

Vehicles per 1,000

Urban road km.

US$

population

per 1,000 vehicles

Northern Africa (six countries)

1,110

29

9.3

Western Africa (sixteen countries)

701

11

17.1

Central Africa (seven countries)

299

31.4

Africa 355

16.5

125

2.8

Eastern

and

Southern

(twenty two)
South Africa

2,080

Clearly higher per capita incomes are associated with higher vehicle ownership levels per capita
of urban road. In cities of developing countries it can be expected that vehicle ownership will be
significantly higher than the national average by factors of between 5 to 10, reflecting higher per
capita incomes and economic activity levels in cities. Vehicle ownership levels may also be
related to city size though the relationship is not clear.
The relationship between road kilometre per vehicle and city size and per capita income is
complex. A low value for road kilometre per vehicle is likely to indicate high congestion which
29

could equally well be experienced by high vehicle numbers on a good road network or low
vehicle numbers on a poor road network. However, congestion may not be so bad in cities with
high vehicle ownership, because of better traffic control and management, better vehicle
condition, and higher driving standards.
Suggested norms for developing cities, which again need further refinement, are shown.
Table 9: Expected vehicle ownership for different city categories.
City per capita income:

City size millions:

Vehicles

US$

per

1,000 Road km. per 1,000

population,
<1,000

>1,000

vehicles

<1.0

10 - 40

1.0 - 5.0

30 - 60

>5.0

50 - 80

<1.0

20 - 50

1.0 - 5.0

40 - 70

>5.0

60 - 90

10 - 50

1 - 10

e) Transport prices
Public transport fares for a 5km trip length have been recorded for a number of cities in the
developing world (World Bank, 1987), though the data is now somewhat dated. The range of
values for the 33 cities listed was between 0.01 - 0.4 US cents, with an average of 0.15 US cents.
The highest values were found in the higher income cities, and were charged for the 'higher
value' services like those provided by shared taxis. Current norms are likely to be perhaps 50%
higher, at between 0.015 - 0.6 US cents per 5km trip. Suggested norms for different categories of
developing Cities and public transport service shown.
Table 10: Expected average public transport fares.
City per capita income:

Public transport service

US$

Av. fare per 5km trip: US

cents.

< 1,000

>1,000

low quality

0.015 - 0.1

high quality

0.1 - 02

low quality

0.2 - 0.4

high quality

0.3 - 0.6

30

The price of petrol is likely to be in the range of $1.00 to $3.00 per gallon (22 - 66 cents per
litre), with an average pump price of $1.87 per gallon (41 cents per litre) in 1994. Higher prices
are more realistic in view of the fact that the average border price of fuel is $1.00 per gallon.
f) Modal choice
In developing cities use of non-motorised transport (particularly walking) is high, though there is
little documentary evidence to demonstrate this. Modal choice data is not easily captured and at
best may show only the choice between vehicular modes. The tables below show some typical
ranges for percentage of trips undertaken by different modes for a sample of African cities.
Table 11: Urban travel - percentage of person trips by mode (including walk)
car

Bus

Taxi

Two-wheels

Walking

others

North Africa

5-I8

3-27

0-5

0-13

50-84

0-4

West Africa

9-33

8-60

0-7

1- 15

3 -63

0-10

Central Africa

14-22

7-17

15-20

1-13

36-55

East/Southern Africa

4-30

14-72

0-8

0-7

5-72

0-10

Table 12: Urban travel - percentage of person trips by mode (excluding walk)
car

Bus

Taxi

Two-wheels

others

North Africa

19-54

15-70

0-15

0-66

0-10

West Africa

12-45

23 -73

0-13

0-40

0-20

Central Africa

21-50

16-27

31-33

1-20

East/Southern Africa

14-52

31-82

0-13

0-18

0-30

STOCKHOLM CITY
Stockholm is the Swedish capital and the countrys largest city. It is the most populated urban
area in Scandinavia with a total population of around 1,861,000 with 750,000 in the urban and
1,100,000 in the suburban,( Brendan Finn,2005). The urban settlement in Stockholm has mainly
been developed in a star-like pattern. From the beginning, the undeveloped wedges to a great
extent were royal parks, land belonging to noble families, or military exercise fields. When the
urbanised area expanded, the building of neighbourhoods have been coordinated with the
31

building of railway and underground systems and have been situated to areas between royal,
military and other restricted areas. Later on, these areas with restricted access have been
transformed to recreational, forestry or agricultural areas. The star-shaped urban development
has formed a sort of structure with green wedges between the settlement and traffic zones.
The citys roads and streets are an integrated component in the regional transport system which
comprises motorways, railways, public transport and waterways that are managed by various
government agencies and companies. Together, the City of Stockholm, the Swedish Transport
Administration, the County Council (in its role as regional public transport agency) and the City
of Solna are responsible for the regions primary transport system.
A significant proportion of all journeys in the region occur within the city. Approximately
570,000 people work in Stockholm. Of these individuals, 54 per cent live within the city limits
and a further 22 per cent live in one of the ten adjoining municipalities. 16 per cent commute
from the countys other 15 municipalities, while only 8 per cent commute from another county,
(Statistics Sweden/the City of Stockholms Office of Research and Statistics, 2009).
Regional enlargement means it can be easier to commute longer distances but the number who
do so will continue to be small compared with those who commute within the city limits or from
neighbouring municipalities. Stockholm is a modern and planned city; various policies to
regulate mass motorisation and to shape the character of the systems of transport have developed
in the city to what it is today.
The Urban Form and Structure of Stockholm
Stockholm is very much a result of planning efforts and development strategies. From the early
days, the city took active part in providing people with affordable and decent housing. An
important part of the strategy was to buy land for development and also to preserve areas for
recreation purposes. The strategy and the planning goals were inspired by modernistic ideals
with clear physical separation between dwelling, work and business areas, following the
principles of zoning. A city-wide comprehensive plan was made that lined out a strategy for the
growth of the city. New suburbs were planned along metro lines like pearls on a string. Each
suburb was designed as a neighbourhood unit with a social and commercial core, high density
housing close to the station and in the periphery lower density housing together with self built
32

one-family homes. A green structure was established with green areas and parks dividing the
neighbourhoods.
Another important part of the strategy to develop a modern liveable city was establishing largescale systems for heating, sewage and waste treatment. Among other vital infrastructure systems,
major investments were made in establishing an efficient public transport system based on a
network of metro lines and commuting trains. The idea was to make it possible for people to live
pleasantly in the suburbs and take the metro to work in the city centre or in designated work
areas. The planning strategies served the development of Stockholm well during several decades
providing people good housing conditions and a healthy environment. The result was good but
like any other city, Stockholm is faced with challenges of meeting todays needs of developing a
sustainable city.
The urban public transport
Stockholm has probably got one of the best public transport systems in the world relative to the
population in the city and urban area. The city is served with very good transport systems of an
extensive metro, commuter rail, regional rail and light rail, tram and bus system. The transport
network in Stockholm is run by Storstockholm Lokaltrafik (SL). Cycling is also very common
and advocated for in the city.
The urban public transport offers all citizens an accessible public transport service as well as
meeting customer demands such as; reliable, sustainable transports, safe and secure with
competitive fares. SL always seeks to contribute to a fair and sustainable development of the
region. Stockholm has managed to channel the growth of the metropolitan area more inwards,
densifying the inner parts of the region. The strengths of Stockholm also include a wide railbased public transport system, new orbital public transport connections, excellent cycling
infrastructure and successful traffic calming policies.
The Transport Systems
a) Bus
Buses in Stockholm play an integral part where the railway systems do not reach. They primarily
act as feeders within areas to the nearest railway system or act as cross-suburb connectors. There
are a vast number of bus lines in Stockholm city and the county in general. There are three
33

different kinds of bus lines that differ from regular bus lines which are; the inner-city blue bus
lines, the suburban blue bus lines and the service bus lines.
The blue bus are in the inner city variant trunk lines traversing large parts of the Stockholm inner
city and in the suburban variant acting as important feeder lines between the suburbs and public
transport hubs in central Stockholm or providing crossway connections between suburbs. These
are called blue bus lines because the buses that operate on them are painted blue, in contrast to
the red colour of the regular buses, (www.sl.se). The blue buses operate on Stockholms four
BRT lines that serve the city centre with feeder routes connecting suburban areas to the highspeed trunk route. The service bus lines are especially adapted for elderly people and are found
in certain residential areas. Along some parts of these lines, instead of regular bus stops there are
areas where one can halt the bus just by waving at them.
Plate 1: The blue bus in Stockholm

Source: www.sl.se
b) Metro system
Stockholm has had metro (also known as tunnelbana) system for more than 60 years. The first
line opened in 1950 and today the system has 100 stations in use of which 47 are underground
and 53 above the ground, (SL Annual Report, 2006). The Stockholm Metro consists of three
groups of lines; the blue line (20 stations), the red line (36 stations) and the green line with 49
34

station. In 2013, the daily ridership was 898,630 on average with the annual ridership of 328
million as reported by SL 2013 statistics. The system top speed is 80km/hr.
The 105.7 kilometres long metro system is owned by the Stockholm County Council through
Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (SL). The operation is contracted to MTR Corporation (the
contractor). The Stockholm metro has been called 'the world's longest art gallery' with most of
the network's 100 stations decorated with sculptures, mosaics, paintings, installations, engravings
and reliefs.
Plate 2: The Metro Train and Station

A metro train at Gamla stan station

Graffiti at the Karlaplan metro station on the red line

Source: Google images

Source: www.citylab.com

c) The Rails
The trains are divided into four; Light rail, Tram, Metro and Commuter trains.
Light rail and trams: Light rail or light rail transit (LRT) is typically an urban form of public
transport often using rolling stock similar to a tramway but operating primarily along
exclusive rights-of-way and having vehicles capable of operating as a single tramcar or as
multiple units coupled together to form a train. In Stockholm, there is one operational heritage
tram line, the infrastructure in owned by SL but the cars are owned and operated by a different
entity. There are three regular light rail lines and one inner city tram line in Stockholm and only

35

two of them are connected and share depot and rolling stock. There are five tram routes in the
city and all have standard gauge with electric propelled systems.
Commuter rail, also called suburban rail is a passenger rail transport service that primarily
operates between the city centre and the middle to outer suburbs beyond 15 km and commuter
towns or other locations that draw large numbers of commuters . Trains operate following a
schedule, at speeds varying from 50 to 200 km/h. Distance charges or zone pricing may be used.
Most commuter (or suburban) trains are built to main line rail standards, differing from light
rail or rapid transit (metro rail) systems by; being larger, providing more seating and less
standing room, for the longer distances involved, having (in most cases) a lower frequency of
service, having scheduled services (i.e. trains run at specific times rather than at specific
intervals), serving lower-density suburban areas, typically connecting suburbs to the city center
sharing track or right-of-way with intercity or freight trains and not fully grade separated
(containing at-grade crossings with crossing gates)
Plate 3: A tram

A tram in Stockholm (Source: funini.com)

Regional rail, also known as local trains are passenger rail services that operate between towns
and cities. Their services operate beyond the limits of urban areas and either connects similarly
sized smaller cities and towns, or cities and surrounding towns, outside or at the outer rim of a
suburban belt. The service is less oriented around bringing commuters to the urban centres,
although this may generate part of the traffic on some systems.
36

Figure 1: Stockholm Metro, Light Rail and Suburban Railways Lines Network

Source: www.skyscrapercity.com
d) Ferries and Boats
Stockholm has ferries and boats that also form part of the transportation system. They are not a
main form of transportation for many and are used by 1.7 million people per year, (www.
http://www.skyscrapercity.com)
e) Cycling in Stockholm
There are over 750km of cycle tracks in Stockholm city and the city is committed to furthering
the number of people who use bikes as a means of transport. Bicycles are used by about 10 per
cent of the citys inhabitants to travel to work or school according to the citys environmental
survey, (urban mobility strategy, 2012). Cycling in Stockholm has reinforced their strategic plans
of achieving sustainable urban transport in that cycling is both better for the environment and
good for health. There are lots of cycle paths around the city and many of them are separated
from the traffic on the road. The city has exhibited their total commitment to support cycling by

37

enhancing safety for cyclists characterised by availability of cycle paths, good crossings,
parking, rain shelters, free air compressors and city bikes that allows bike share scheme.
Stockholm City Bikes is the name of a public-private partnership project of Stockholm. It is
a community bicycle program that allows renting a bicycle for a maximum period of 3 hours,
between 06:00 and 22:00, (http://www.stockholmcitybikes.se).
Plate 4: Cycle Track and Stockholm City Bikes

A bike path in Stockholm

Stockholm city bikes.

Source: http://greenasathistle.com/

Source: Google images

Urban Transport Performance Evaluation

The SL contracts various transport operators for a 5 year period contranct renewable based on
the performance. The contract for the services is based on key performance criteria; Operation of
all scheduled services, punctuality, vehicle cleanliness, vehicle condition, staff behaviour and
driving quality, information to the customer, safety and security of the customer, (Brendan Finn,
2005).
SL monitors the service performance through a mix of self-reporting by the operators and service
monitoring. In addition, SL organises unannounced checks on the contracted services. After the
investigation, a run-through with the contractor will be carried out. If it becomes apparent that
the agreed quality level has not been kept, the contractor has to carry out an action programme. If
38

this in turn does not lead to an acceptable improvement the result may be that the contractor does
not receive agreed payments, this can lead to termination of the agreement.
SL urban transport evaluation measures are focussed on the; system performance, public
performance and operator performance. Some of the measures are outlined below bases on 2013
statistics highlighted in Brendan Finn, 2005.
SYSTEM PERFORMANCE MEASURES
Total annual passenger trips, Underground 279 million boardings (2003)
all modes
Bus
258 million
Commuter train 63 million
Local train, tram
27 million
Total
627 million boardings. Calculated as 389 million person-trips
(taking transfers into account)
Bus mode share
41%
Annual bus km. Operated
97 million (2003) (est.)
Annual bus capacity-km
5,667 million bus seat-kms. (2003)
Annual bus ridership
258 million boardings (2003)
- urban
- suburban
Annual bus passenger km.
1,525 million (2003)
Average bus trip length
5.91 km. (2003)
Average load factor
26.9% calculated as bus passenger kilometres over bus seat kilometres
Bus fleet size
1,786 (2003)
- city bus
- articulated
- minibus
Annual revenue
3,329 million SEK - all modes (2003)
Average revenue per trip
5.30 SEK per boarding, 8.56 SEK per person-trip all modes (2003)
Average single fare per trip
500 SEK for 30-day ticket, all modes (2003)
Bus Cost recovery ratio
47.5% - all modes (2003)
Bus
Annual
operating
subsidy
3,861 million SEK all modes(2003)
- total
- service support
- fare support
- concessionary
Bus
Annual
capital Infrastructure only. Buses are treated in the annual accounts, but are not shown
expenditure
separately for other rolling stock.
- infrastructure
- buses
Nil in 2003

39

- other

858 million SEK in 2002

Nil in 1999 to 2001
Public transport subsidy as 1.17% of collected taxes?
% of city budget
Statistic reported as Out of each taxable 100 SEK this amount goes to SL
Bus subsidy as % of total PT Not shown separately
subsidy
Subsidy per bus passenger 6.15 SEK per boarding, all modes (2003)
boarding
9.92 SEK per person trip, all modes (2003)

PUBLIC SECTOR PERFORMANCE MEASURES

Number
of
different 3 operators provide bus services
operators providing services
Busslink
Swebus
Connex Sverige
Number of routes bid in c. 400
open tender
Tendered routes as % of total
routes
- by routes
100%
- by annual kms.
100%
Average tender unit size :
Not known, but believed to be quite large. Some commentators have identified
- buses
this as a significant barrier to entry.
- routes
- Annual kms.
Impact on unit costs
Frequency of surveys to Over and above the normal self- reporting and monitoring of the contracted
check for reliable service
services, during 2003 a total of 30 unannounced checks were carried out at the
traffic contractors.
Market research
SL carries out regular passenger surveys. These are carried out at least twice per
- surveys of passenger year. They are part of the BEST Benchmarking network of cities. Customers are
demand
asked about :
- surveys of passenger
satisfaction
Frequency of services
- surveys of passenger
Punctuality of services
preferences
Behaviour of personnel
surveys
of
fare
Cleanliness of vehicles
affordability
Cleanliness of stations
Information on traffic disruptions
Security in the evening
Overall grading of the route on which they are travelling
Views and complaints of the customers are collected via SLs Forum and via the
transport operators own customer service units.

40

Weighted average scheduled

peak hour bus speed
In mixed traffic 20 km/hr (1996)
- latest year
In bus lanes 30 km/hr (1996)
- change on previous year
Monthly tickets sold, by type 30-day tickets
3.9 million tickets sold (2003)
Season ticket
0.2 million
12-month ticket
0.1 million
Discount coupons
161 million
Cash coupons
24.6 million
30-day, season, 12-month ticket 2,078 million SEK
Discount coupons
755 million SEK
Cash coupons
232 million SEK
Other tickets
264 million SEK
Total ticket income
3,329 million SEK (2003)

OPERATOR PERFORMANCE MEASURES

% Achievement of minimum 99.8 % overall of scheduled buses departures operated (2003)
scheduled km.
99.7% central region
99.7% city centre
99.8% northern region
99.9% southern region
Number of routes operating 91.4 % overall buses departed on time (2003)
at or above Reliable Service 88.7% central region
minimum
84.1% city centre
96.0% northern region
96.4% southern region
Breakdowns in service per
million bus km.
Average age of buses in fleet
% availability of total fleet at
peak
% of buses parked off-street
overnight
Serious accidents per million
bus km
- fatal
- serious injury
%
services
one-person 100%
operation

41

THE NAIROBI CITY

General
The city of Nairobi owes its early development and growth to the Kenya Uganda Railway. The
railhead reached Nairobi in June 1899 and by July it had become the headquarters of the Kenya
Uganda Railway (Rakodi 1997). This led to Nairobis growth as a commercial and business hub
of the British East Africa protectorate (Mitullah 2003). By 1900, Nairobi had become a large and
flourishing place with the settlement consisting mainly of the railway buildings and separate
areas for Europeans and Indians, the latter mainly comprising the labourers engaged in building
the railway. Nairobi as an urban centre was officially defined in 1900 under the Nairobi
Municipal Community regulations and it became the capital of Kenya in 1907 (Mitullah 2003,
Rakodi 1997).
Like many other cities in developing countries, Nairobi has experienced very rapid population
growth since its formation. The rapid increase in population has been mainly attributed to rural
urban migration just like the case in many cities in the developing countries.
Figure 2: Map of Nairobi County showing the three districts and 8 constituencies

Source: Adopted from KNBS

42

Increase in population has put a lot of pressure on the existing infrastructure specifically the
transport infrastructure which has not been updated to match with high population increase rates.
The Nairobi population growth trend is shown below.
Table 13: Population History of Nairobi
Year
1906

Population
(1,000)

Average Annual Remark

Growth Rate (%)
st

11

1 Master Plan (1898),

nd

2 Plan for Settler Capital (1927)

rd

1948

119

6.84

3 Master plan(1948)

1963

342

7.29

Independence (1963), Capital of Kenya

1969

509

6.85

1 Census

1979

828

4.99

4 Master plan (1973), 2 Census

1989

1,325

4.81

3 Census

1999

2,143

4.93

4 Census

2009

3,138

3.89

5 Census, New Constitution (2010)

st

th

nd

rd
th
th

Source: Nairobi Master Plan, 2014

Nairobi Urban Structure
The transportation system in Nairobi is both a reflection and a consequence of a historical and an
ongoing interplay between the urban structure and the overall social-economic profiles of the
city. Historically, the growth of Nairobi has been guided by a fairly inflexible zoning regime
with separated industrial, commercial and residential belts.
According to Aligula et al. (2005) the spatial structure of Nairobi comprises a strong CBD with
most of the formal jobs within a radial road network leading to major cities along which
development, (primarily residential) has occurred. The major roads include Thika Road, Lang'ata
Road, Ngong Road, Mombasa Road and Waiyaki Way. Although there is now a trend towards
mixed land-use patterns, the basic character of the city consists of:
i. An Industrial belt in the Eastern and North-Eastern parts of the city. This is defined by the
Eastern parts of Mombasa road, and belt around the Northern part of Outer Ring Road and to
the North East of Thika Road.
43

ii. The commercial Central Business District (CBD), defined by Uhuru Highway, Haile-Selassie
Avenue Kirinyaga Road, and spreading northwards to Westlands.
iii. Residential areas surrounding the above land-uses, with particularly high population
concentrations in the Eastern side of Outer Ring Road, along Juja Road and in the informal
settlements in Kibera, Kawangware and Kangemi.
Mengesha et al. (2002) identified that there are about 300 km of main and 850 km of access
roads in Nairobi. There are 964 km of paved roads and 188 km of unpaved roads and more than
60% of the road network is in a much deteriorated condition. Nairobi has six major arterial
routes into the city centre with Jogoo Road and Mombasa Road carrying the heaviest traffic
flows between 30,000 and 50,000 vehicles per day. However, sections of the ring road on the
western side of the city centre, Uhuru Highway, carry the highest flows with levels of over
90,000 vehicles. Three regional arterial roads pass through the Nairobi Metropolitan Area; the
Uhuru Highway leading to Athi River and Mombasa, the Limuru Road to Kisumu, and the Thika
Road to Muranga, Nanyuki, Embu and Meru. Parallel to these arterial roads are railway lines
that lead to Mombasa, Eldoret, Kitale and Nanyuki (JICA, 2006). It is worth noting that
Mombasa Road, Uhuru Highway and Waiyaki way form part of the Northern corridor which is a
major transport lifeline in Eastern Africa.
Figure 3: Major routes and Traffic in Nairobi

Source: Mengesha et al, 2005

44

There is a correlation between population density and travel demand. The Nairobi case
demonstrates this well where the CBD and its immediate surroundings have been undergoing
rapid changes over the last decade. Consequently, areas that were formerly low-to-medium
density residential areas have over the years witnessed land use and density changes that has
resulted in more traffic; motorised and non-motorised. Despite this pattern of growth, planning
of Nairobi has also contributed to the citys unsustainable transport system. Because of weak
institutional capacities and legal provisions for land use planning, the right balance between land
use planning, urban grown and transport development has not been achieved as reported by
ClimateXL.
Given the nature of densification and land-use changes within the core and surrounding areas of
Nairobi city, public transport modes will continue to play an important role in meeting transport
demand. A study by JICA (2006) forecast total trips in Nairobi to roughly double from 4.82
million trips per day in 2004 to 8.28 million trips per day in 2025.
Figure 4: Trips per Day by Destination

45

Source: JICA 2006.

Nairobi Public Transport
Public transport in Nairobi is mainly road based dependent mainly on bus services and paratransit mode of public transport locally known as Matatu. Railway is also used in some parts
especially the commuter trains. The history of public transport dates back to the colonial days
where the first formal bus service consisted of a fleet of buses owned by Overseas Transport
Company of London which was letter transformed into Kenya Bus Company with the monopoly
to operate on the city routes granted by the Nairobi City council in the mid nineteen sixties.
However due to increased demand for public transport, privately owned informal modes of
transport developed to cater for transport need for people who were living in informal settlement
that by then begun to rise. (Mukabanah and Massimba E, 2008)
Today public transport is considered in the city as one of the most chaotic modes of travel and
most investors with privately owned buses are reeling of losses due to inability to manage their
vehicles efficiently. Meeting demand for transportation services has been one of the challenges
facing cities in developing countries. Despite this, vehicle owners in public transport in Nairobi
are not reaping the full benefits of their investment due to lack of proper tools to manage their
46

investment. Bus companies have to employ extra personnel to record number of trips, amount of
money made per trip and supervise the vehicle operators. This reduces the profit margins of the
vehicle owners. Another challenge is congestion and other forms of traffic delay which in the
long run inflates the operational costs.
Modes of public transport in Nairobi
Available modes of transport in the Nairobi include matatus (shared mini-bus taxis), buses (KBS
and other private companies), trains, boda bodas (motorbikes), Tuk-tuks (three-wheeled taxis)
and regular taxis. According to the comprehensive study done by JICA (2006), out of 4.82
million trips per day made in Nairobi in 2004, 2.32 million trips/day were made by either
walking or cycling while almost all the rest are by motorized transport. The non-motorized
transport (NMT) therefore represents 48.2 % of all daily trips and occurs for short distances,
usually less than 5Km. An overwhelming majority of the NMT trips (22.7million) are made by
walking (47%) while cycling contributes 55 thousand trips or 1.1% of all NMT trips. Except for
train services provided by the government owned Kenya Railways Corporation; all other modes
of transport are operated by private sector investors.

Transport Modal Split for Nairobi (Source Cape Town University)

The commuter train offers more reliable travel times than the roads since the train is not affected
by traffic jams during its travel and it reaches the targeted destinations within the scheduled time.
Train is also more affordable than road travel. In an effort to improve railway transport in
Nairobi and encourage the use of commuter train services, expansion and improvement of the
47

existing railway line and construction of new lines to cover the major trip attraction and
destination zones have been proposed.
Figure 5: Nairobi city commuter train network map showing the already existing and
proposed new railway lines.

Source: (Nairobi Master Plan, 2014).

Walking is the only travel option for the majority of the population who cannot afford the public
transport fares. Urban sprawl and population growth lead to city expansion and thus the walking
trips are becoming longer as the employment opportunities and important services remain
centralized in the CBD and the industrial areas. A big problem for the pedestrians is that most of
the roads are only designed for vehicles making no provision for NMT users. Most of the
sidewalks that currently exist are gravel sidewalks. These walking routes are often obstructed by
waste, parked vehicles or hawkers and are generally unsafe and uncomfortable to use. There are
a few constructed footways in Nairobi, although those that do exist are generally filthy and in
very poor condition, (Mengesha et al., 2002).
For two and a half decades, KBS were the only official public transport service provider in
Nairobi. Matatus were seen as illegal operators who were operating in a disorganised manner
without licenses. As Nairobis population grew larger, the matatus started to provide more public
transport services. Nyayo Bus Services was formed in 1986 as a publicly owned bus company.
48

Poor road infrastructure, lack of financial support from government, lack of consistent traffic
enforcement and unfair competition from the matatus caused KBS and Nyayo bus companies to
struggle during the 1990s. As a result the matatus grew to serve more than 50% of the citys
population by the mid-2000s, (McCormick et al., 2011).

49

METHODOLOGY
Data collection, Analysis and Presentation
The study was based on the review of the extensive literature on the nature of the transport
system in Nairobi, the previous surveys done, recommendations and what has been implemented
so far. The reviewed literature was obtained from reports of similar study, reports on Nairobi
transport systems, websites containing relevant information. The author's general observation
and personal experience in Nairobi city has positively contributed towards the study.
The data collected was collated and synthesized to produce a structured report having findings
and discussions chapter followed by the recommendations. A PowerPoint presentation was also
done.

50

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

Nairobi city is a good example of a city that was born due to the existing major transport line.
Nairobi emerged as a simple rail deport on the railway linking Mombasa to Uganda. Since then
the growth of the city and its transportation network has been very phenomenal. Informally the

growth, form and structure of Nairobi have been guided by a fairly inflexible zoning regime with
separated industrial, commercial and residential belts. By 1963, Africans, who formed a major
part of the population lived in the eastern part of Nairobi while the Europeans and Asians lived
in the western suburbs. There was segregation between the European, Asian and African
residential areas. This layout is still present today but rather in terms of incomes and population
densities than in terms of race. The corridors serving the higher income areas receive better
infrastructure and have better mobility especially for the private car while the middle and low
income areas with higher demand for public transport, have poor road networks and related
infrastructure.
The spatial structure of Nairobi comprises a strong CBD with most of the formal jobs within a
radial road network leading to major cities along which development, (primarily residential) has
occurred. The major roads include Thika Road, Lang'ata Road, Ngong Road, Mombasa Road
and Waiyaki Way. There is a lack of sufficient ring roads around the CBD to divert the through
traffic or intra-urban traffic away from the city centre. Currently the city centre road
infrastructure accommodates three types of traffic namely: the through traffic, the city centre
traffic, and inter-zonal or inter-city traffic, which is creating unnecessary congestion within the
city. All of these traffic types do not necessarily need to pass through the CBD. The government
has been committed to improve the situation by funding the construction of Northern, Eastern
and Southern bypasses.
The existing commuter rail is inadequate in meeting the existing demand. The extent of the
operations and service provided is limited by the railway infrastructure, although there is a
demand for services in urban areas. There is a lack of subsidy from central government and this
has prevented KRC from expanding the network to cater for more commuters. However, there
are plans underway to revamp the commuter rail by expanding the network and making the
service more attractive to the users. The proposed lines will focus the reach the densely
populated areas.
51

Escalation of population has been coupled with urban sprawl. Increased population has resulted
to people opting to live far away from the vicinity of the CBD as it were the norm. This has been
attributed by need for more space, cheaper housing and less congestion. Consequently, the trip
lengths and time taken to the CBD has greatly increased. This has made walking and cycling not
attractive at the expense of motorised modes. This has led to more people to consider private
vehicles that are more safe, flexible and comfortable compared with the existing public transport.
Land use mix and change in density in the various parts of the city have resulted to millions of
trips generated daily. Areas that were formally low-to-medium density residential areas have
over the years witnessed land use and density changes that has resulted in more traffic; motorised
and non-motorised.
For public urban transport to realize its full benefits, government intervention is mandatory.
Unfortunately this is not the case with Nairobi public transport or Kenya at large where the
public transport has been left wobbling in the hands of the private sector. The matatus overtook
the role of buses and are characterised by wreckless driving, breaking traffic rules is the order of
the day, causing congestion and not mindful of the passengers comfort but profit oriented. The
commuter rail which is under the national government through an agency, KRC, over the years it
has exhibited downward trend in its performance. From urban transportation perspective, this is
worrying since trains have proven to improve mobility in a city if well managed due to
economies of scale.
On a single breadth, the public transport of Nairobi is wanting and is characterised by the
following;

Unavailable

Unsafe

Unreliable

Uncomfortable

Congestion

Unaffordable

EMERGING ISSUES
Urban Planning and Urban Transport
Increase in population and socioeconomic development has largely influenced the land use mix
which has induced large volumes of traffic demand. Despite this pattern of growth, planning of
52

Nairobi city has also contributed to the citys unsustainable transport system. Because of weak
institutional capacities and legal provisions for land use planning, the right balance between land
use planning, urban growth and transport development has not been achieved. Urban sprawl has
led to increased trip lengths and travel time to the city. Unfortunately, public transport has not
improved to match the demand. Given the nature of densification and land-use changes within
the core surrounding areas of Nairobi city, public transport will continue to play an important
role in meeting transport demand.
Considering the strong interrelationship between urban form and transport, the integration of
land-use and transport planning represents a unique policy opportunity. Above all, the provision
of strategic infrastructure is one of the most critical public policy instruments in forming the
long-term shape and character of a city at any stage in its development (Hall 1993; Mller and
Siedentop 2004). Transport infrastructure and services also play a key role in determining urban
mobility patterns, including modal choice. Ideally, infrastructure developments are directly
linked to strategic planning policy which in turn informs local planning and regulation. This
approach to planning is commonly adopted in many developed cities; it is far less effective in the
developing world where there is typically limited institutional capacity and a high degree of
informal urban growth. Case in point is Nairobi city where the city council has proved their
inadequacy to regulate urban sprawl and settlement density despite having zoning regulations
and ordinances. In addition the intervention of the local government on private development has
been futile; private developers in many instances have grabbed public land including transport
infrastructure corridors (road, rail, and airport) and walked scot free in the name of saving.
Within spatial planning, the effective management of urban growth is essential to promoting
compact, well planned city forms. Urban growth boundaries and other policies that incentivise
the development of brownfield over greenfield land are common compact city policy instruments
(World Bank 2013), and experience has highlighted the importance of working with the
appropriate urban scale and shape of development restrictions in order to avoid negative
outcomes. Other instruments include minimum density standards, mixed-use regulation and a
density bonus for developers in order to support compact city development with a hierarchy of
higher density, mixed-use clusters around public transport nodes. For example, Denmarks
Planning Act on the Station Proximity Principle requires new offices over 1,500m2 to be
53

located within 600m of a rail station, leading to Copenhagens efficient, compact urban form
(Floater, Rode et al. 2014c).
A further key priority for compact city policy is reforming inappropriate building density
limitations. To be successful, density regulation reform needs to be coordinated with new
infrastructure financing schemes. Local-level interventions, including the redistribution of road
space away from private vehicles and increasing investment in infrastructure for public and nonmotorised transport, have proved successful in reducing motorized traffic in cities (Goodwin,
Hass-Klau et al. 1998; Rode 2014). Furthermore, human-scale urban design considerations
require a shift away from road capacity-oriented street planning to a focus on finer-grain urban
fabric, including smaller block sizes, higher building densities and mixed use to facilitate microaccessibility, last-mile connectivity, walkability and social interaction.
The planning approach should involve engagement with the existing urban form and flows of the
city in order to identify how best to sequence, coordinate and integrate various infrastructure
investments with land-use development, which in turn will determine the citys energy efficiency
and competitiveness in the long term. Such planning approaches also provide an opportunity to
improve social inclusion by actively prioritising housing and infrastructure provision for lower
income households.
Regulatory policy instruments also play a key role in shaping urban transport performance.
Measures to manage car use in cities commonly include parking regulations, emissions standards
and driving restrictions. For example, many Chinese cities have started to limit the total number
of privately owned vehicles through restrictions on the number of license plates issued per
month, with Shanghai beginning to control the growth of private vehicle registrations as early as
1994 (one reason for the citys considerably lower vehicle stock compared to Beijing) (Hao,
Wang et al. 2011). Reforming urban transport regulation to embrace innovative service provision
is also important, for example by moving from a closed permit system to an open permit
system for para-transit and intermediate public transport (Government of India 2014).
Institutional Setup and Stakeholders role
There is no specific clear institution that is directly responsible for public transport provision and
operations in Nairobi. However, various governmental institutions are directly involved in urban
planning and transport in Nairobi. This has resulted to segmentation of responsibilities and lack
54

of cooperation hence leaving critical issues not well addressed. Some of the institutions include;
Nairobi City Council, Kenya Rail Corporation, Matatu Owners Association, Kenya Bus Services
Ltd, Kenya Urban Roads Authority, National Transport and Safety Authority.
The key stakeholders in any city or urban area are the residents. They are directly affected on a
daily basis by the planning regulations, the transport infrastructure provided and also the public
transport services offered to them. Stakeholder participation has been identified as critical
ingredients towards success of any project. This provides an avenue for the residents and other
stakeholders to air their most urgent needs and provide alternatives to the solutions. Such
contributions can be positively integrated with the city master plan or other plans in deciding
where to place what hence influencing the overall infrastructure. City residents will always want
to have short trip lengths e.g. home to school. Public participation can also be quite effective
especially when locating bus stops or stations and also during scheduling.
In Nairobi, until recently, public participation has been continuously not considered necessary
especially in the city planning. Unfortunately even today, it is an exercise undertaken to meet the
formal requirements rather than actively incorporating the public in the planning processes and
implementation. Financiers such as World Bank and African Development Bank have made it
mandatory to allow for public hearing as a condition for their funding. For sustainable urban
growth and transport, public participation is very critical and both local and national government
should strive to see that the exercise is granted its due value.
Public Transport guidelines
There exist no (or limited) public transport guidelines in Nairobi and Kenya at large. The traffic
act provides general operation guidelines on all the traffic in Kenya. There is a need for special
guidelines and regulations on public transport. The guidelines should be on public transport
vehicle design and construction to enhance safety and passenger comfort. It is also important to
regulate the amount of emissions by the vehicle to minimise pollution and issues such as fuel
consumption efficiency. Passenger comfort during the use of the public transport modes should
be well addressed from national policy level to local general regulations.
Largely, the public transport in Nairobi has been controlled by profit oriented investors who have
no regard for vehicle design and passenger comfort, what matter most is the maximization of
profits. This has left the public transport to poor people who cannot afford to own a car for their
55

transportation needs. Regulations such as the routes served by public transport, scheduling, and
regulation of fare and customer care services always have a direct positive impact on the public
transport. Usually such regulations are put in place after due consideration and hence the users
feel they are provided with what is best for them and always results to a more organised system.
Emerging Technologies
New technologies may affect the ways in which society works, travels, lives, and provides
energy. Some new technologies may have an impact on the shape and size of settlements, and the
ways in which they develop. This has happened in the past with the development of rail, the
electricity grid, and mobile communications, and is currently happening, for example, through
the ICT-enabled growth of home-working and more footloose office locations, and on-line
shopping affecting traditional retailing. Thus, embracing technology can have a positive
influence on urban public transport, for instance the number of trips and frequency can be
reduced.
Technology has made mass transit systems possible such as Bus Rapid (BRT) and Light Rail
Transit (LRT). These systems have proved to be very efficient in urban areas due to measures
such as ridership, efficiency, and energy savings. However, LRT as a rapid transit strategy in
urban area can definitely influence urban growth, land use, intensification and revitalization
significantly.

56

CONCLUSION and RECOMMENDATIONS

There is a very strong correlation between urban form and travel demand. The spatial
distribution of housing, working, shopping, leisure, and other activities determines average trip
distances in urban transport. High population density, as well as a mixture of land uses for
various social and economic activities, maintains low distances between origins and destinations
of urban trips. Conversely, low-density development and large road areas increase trip lengths
and lead to a higher share of automobile trips. By influencing the spatial structure of locations in
the urban environment, land use planning can contribute to a reduction of kilometres driven, and
support a high transit share. Dense and mixed-use development helps to keep walking and
cycling attractive. These are the most environmentally friendly transport modes.
Public transport in Nairobi is characterised by; unavailability, unreliability, unsafe,
uncomfortable and unaffordable. The performance of public transport in Nairobi can be
improved by adopting Sustainable urban transport systems. Mobility is achieved if the effective
regulations, transport, performance indicators and sustainability factors are balanced during the
planning and urban design process are initiated.
Integrating transport planning and land use enhances proper provision of public transport
systems with respect to accessibility, connectivity etc. Physical planning is potentially important
because spatial structure has an impact on the efficiency of public transport operations.
The City Council of Nairobi and the central government need to firmly control and come up with
proper guidelines on the sprouting and development of new residential and commercial areas
within the city.
Urban Transport Development Strategy
The following principles can be used to guide the development of an urban transport
infrastructure strategy. The principles encompass; systems criteria, economic criteria, social
criteria, environmental criteria and governance criteria.
a) Systems criteria

Analysing and assessing urban transport performance in a systems context.

Approaching long term planning (including investment) in urban transport in an

integrated and holistic manner, encompassing public, private and active transport.
57

Adopting a mode neutral approach to urban transport and land use planning, investment
and management.

Integrating urban transport planning, investment and management decisions with land use
planning decisions, including through the use of the same assumptions.

Underpinning decisions on urban transport planning, investment and management with

the broader aim of moving towards optimum levels of travel.

b) Economic criteria

Make infrastructure investments and maximise capabilities of existing infrastructure in

order to increase national productivity.

Ensure that urban transport infrastructure decisions are underpinned by considerations of

project and life cycle cost, procurement and transition to new technologies.

Underpinning decisions on urban transport infrastructure planning, investment and

management with the assumption that efficient pricing should apply across all modes;
including pricing that reflects economic costs such as congestion at particular times and
places.

Use mechanisms such as road pricing and taxation reform to moderate urban transport
demand and address distributional issues.

Explicitly identify, assess and address risks and uncertainties, including those in relation
to energy supplies, when developing transport plans and when assessing transport
infrastructure proposals.

c) Social criteria

Acknowledge the likely social impacts of urban transport infrastructure proposals,

including impacts on inclusion, access and equity.

Engender community support and confidence in urban transport planning, investment and
management through transparent decision-making processes.

58

d) Environmental criteria

Factor in the potential impacts of climate change and other environmental impacts when
making decisions on urban transport planning, investment and management.

e) Governance criteria

A national approach to decision making in urban transport to ensure consistency across

the country.

Recognise that the Commonwealth has a role in influencing the quality of planning in our
major cities, investing in urban transport infrastructure, and encouraging a consistent
national approach to decisions on urban transport.

A national approach to minimum information collection and analysis, and to public

reporting on the performance of urban transport systems.

59

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