Full Story
Namibia's Transport Challenge
IMAGINE if, 17 years after Independence, Namibia's education system still catered almost exclusively for a small, wealthy elite.
Imagine that spending on schools served the richest half of the
population, while those living on a few dollars a day remained
excluded.
The implications are obvious; this situation would worsen the
poverty trap, providing no opportunities for the poorest people to
better their lives.
Thankfully, Namibia has addressed the gap in education and other
public service spending between different racial and economic
groupings.
It is surprising then that the same cannot be said for a sector
that is a crucial economic accelerator for Namibia's poorest
people: transport.
In the next financial year, the City of Windhoek will receive
N$13,8 million from the Ministry of Works, Communications and
Transport to spend on its roads.
This money will be spent on roads that transport the privileged
minority that can afford their own cars, and a larger number of
taxi users who can afford to pay for the service.
But many Windhoek residents derive no direct benefit from
spending on roads, as they go about their daily travel by foot or
bicycle.
In fact, the current road system places them at a disadvantage,
as it exposes them to the risk of injury and death by mixing them
with motorised vehicles.
Data from Namibia's 2001 census shows that 53 per cent of the
population does not have any access to a motor vehicle, either
because none are owned in their communities, or because they are
too poor to afford to pay for taxis.
This is a staggering figure when one considers Namibia's general
climate of income disparity.
This means that road funding benefits less than half of the
population, who are served with incomplete networks of footpaths
and no bicycling facilities.
All public service spending that ignores the poor serves to
entrench poverty, but the impact of pro-rich transport spending is
less scrutinised than other sectors.
This is a strange omission in public discourse, given that
transport has an impact on poor people's access to just about every
other public resource.
Without good access to transport, poor children have limited
access to school, poor women spend many hours of their day
travelling to perform domestic tasks, sick people have limited
access to healthcare, and the unemployed are stuck in their poor
neighbourhoods, far from economic centres.
A bicycle is the most cost-effective mode of transport for short
distances.
A cyclist travels at least three times faster than a pedestrian,
can carry three times the weight, and can cover a substantially
greater range at a fraction of the cost of a motor vehicle.
Compared with Windhoek's taxi system, a bicycle is also a
significantly cheaper option.
A short distance return taxi journey each day costs $13, over a
month this equals $260, and over six months this mounts up to $1
560.
This is more than enough to purchase a reasonable quality
bicycle, and to maintain it for a number of years.
The inequity of Windhoek's transport system is reflected in a
2004 transport survey by the City of Windhoek that shows residents
of Havana and Okuryangava spend, on average, 28 per cent of their
income on transport, compared with 10 per cent for residents of
Olympia and Klein Windhoek.
Justifying public expenditure on cycling may seem difficult when
the City's transport survey shows that less than 1 per cent of all
trips are made by bicycle.
Of course, improving conditions for pedestrians is far simpler
to justify, as 28 per cent of trips were made by foot, according to
the same survey.
But many survey respondents cited fear of motor vehicles as
their main reason for not cycling.
Little wonder, when there is not one road marking on any major
road in Windhoek that indicates cyclists are legitimate road
users.
This is acknowledged in the City's own transport survey, which
states 'The availability of bicycles and motorcycles is very low,
and can most probably be attributed to the lack of facilities for
these transport modes'.
The survey also shows that on average, 35 per cent of residents
would use a network of cycle lanes if it was provided, with the
figure over 60 per cent in low income areas.
There are other indirect economic benefits of a cycle friendly
city too.
People who cycle just 20 minutes per day have 50 per cent less
risk of heart disease, diabetes and obesity and 30 per cent less
risk of high blood pressure than people who do no regular
exercise.
Stress levels can be greatly reduced through regular exercise,
and there are strong links to reduced stress levels and employee
absenteeism Thus, the cost to the public healthcare system can be
reduced by a more active population, and the cost to the economy in
terms of lost working days reduced.
A myth surrounds the idea of what makes cycling popular in a
city.
The idea that 'cycling culture' is the key determinant is simply
false.
Most of the European cities where cycling accounts for more than
40 per cent of daily trips have been through decades of
car-dominated transport systems.
For social and environmental reasons their residents and town
planners decided to make a conscious switch away from a
car-dominated system, allocating funds to footpaths, cycle lanes
and facilities to lock bicycles.
The residents of these cities are no more or less likely than
any others to adopt cycling, yet once they had safe cycling
facilities they had a choice.
Public education programmes may be necessary to kick-start the
adoption process, but an Owambo or Afrikaner in Windhoek is as
genetically predisposed to ride a bicycle as a Dane in
Copenhagen.
Cycling also faces a perceptual challenge, in that it is
regarded in developing countries as a symbol of backwardness,
whereas motor vehicles symbolise progress and development.
What policymakers in developing countries apparently fail to
realise is that a growing number of the world's most important
capital cities are moving away from cars to promote cycling and
walking.
London introduced congestion charging in 2003, a system whereby
drivers pay a fee to enter a cordon around the central of the
city.
This has brought about a 30 per cent reduction in car use, and
surpluses from the system are reinvested in public transport and
cycle infrastructure.
The decrease in car use and an additional 900 km of cycle lanes
have brought about an 83 per cent increase in cycling in
London.
Similar measures have seen an increase in cycling in New York,
and there are a growing number of European cities with high rates
due to improved infrastructure.
Namibia is even being left behind by its neighbours, with Cape
Town having developed a master plan for cycling, and Gaborone about
to embark on a N$16 million project to improve conditions for
cyclists and pedestrians.
The implications of a transport system that discriminates
against the poor reach up to affect Namibia's top-level approach to
poverty reduction.
No government could hope to achieve the millennium development
goals (MDGs), let alone create sustained economic development,
without having a mobile population.
Of course, the problems of a transport system that discriminates
against the poor are not unique to Windhoek, but the Capital must
take a leading role in changing the national agenda.
The government, if it is serious about goals like eradicating
poverty and achieving universal primary education, must begin
planning and building the means for its citizens to gain access to
opportunities, to free themselves.
* Michael Linke is founder and Managing Director of the
Bicycling Empowerment Network Namibia, a non-profit organisation
that provides bicycles and bicycle ambulances to HIV-AIDS
home-based care organisations.
The implications are obvious; this situation would worsen the
poverty trap, providing no opportunities for the poorest people to
better their lives.Thankfully, Namibia has addressed the gap in
education and other public service spending between different
racial and economic groupings.It is surprising then that the same
cannot be said for a sector that is a crucial economic accelerator
for Namibia's poorest people: transport.In the next financial year,
the City of Windhoek will receive N$13,8 million from the Ministry
of Works, Communications and Transport to spend on its roads.This
money will be spent on roads that transport the privileged minority
that can afford their own cars, and a larger number of taxi users
who can afford to pay for the service.But many Windhoek residents
derive no direct benefit from spending on roads, as they go about
their daily travel by foot or bicycle.In fact, the current road
system places them at a disadvantage, as it exposes them to the
risk of injury and death by mixing them with motorised
vehicles.Data from Namibia's 2001 census shows that 53 per cent of
the population does not have any access to a motor vehicle, either
because none are owned in their communities, or because they are
too poor to afford to pay for taxis.This is a staggering figure
when one considers Namibia's general climate of income
disparity.This means that road funding benefits less than half of
the population, who are served with incomplete networks of
footpaths and no bicycling facilities.All public service spending
that ignores the poor serves to entrench poverty, but the impact of
pro-rich transport spending is less scrutinised than other
sectors.This is a strange omission in public discourse, given that
transport has an impact on poor people's access to just about every
other public resource.Without good access to transport, poor
children have limited access to school, poor women spend many hours
of their day travelling to perform domestic tasks, sick people have
limited access to healthcare, and the unemployed are stuck in their
poor neighbourhoods, far from economic centres.A bicycle is the
most cost-effective mode of transport for short distances.A cyclist
travels at least three times faster than a pedestrian, can carry
three times the weight, and can cover a substantially greater range
at a fraction of the cost of a motor vehicle.Compared with
Windhoek's taxi system, a bicycle is also a significantly cheaper
option.A short distance return taxi journey each day costs $13,
over a month this equals $260, and over six months this mounts up
to $1 560.This is more than enough to purchase a reasonable quality
bicycle, and to maintain it for a number of years.The inequity of
Windhoek's transport system is reflected in a 2004 transport survey
by the City of Windhoek that shows residents of Havana and
Okuryangava spend, on average, 28 per cent of their income on
transport, compared with 10 per cent for residents of Olympia and
Klein Windhoek.Justifying public expenditure on cycling may seem
difficult when the City's transport survey shows that less than 1
per cent of all trips are made by bicycle.Of course, improving
conditions for pedestrians is far simpler to justify, as 28 per
cent of trips were made by foot, according to the same survey.But
many survey respondents cited fear of motor vehicles as their main
reason for not cycling.Little wonder, when there is not one road
marking on any major road in Windhoek that indicates cyclists are
legitimate road users.This is acknowledged in the City's own
transport survey, which states 'The availability of bicycles and
motorcycles is very low, and can most probably be attributed to the
lack of facilities for these transport modes'.The survey also shows
that on average, 35 per cent of residents would use a network of
cycle lanes if it was provided, with the figure over 60 per cent in
low income areas.There are other indirect economic benefits of a
cycle friendly city too.People who cycle just 20 minutes per day
have 50 per cent less risk of heart disease, diabetes and obesity
and 30 per cent less risk of high blood pressure than people who do
no regular exercise.Stress levels can be greatly reduced through
regular exercise, and there are strong links to reduced stress
levels and employee absenteeism Thus, the cost to the public
healthcare system can be reduced by a more active population, and
the cost to the economy in terms of lost working days reduced.A
myth surrounds the idea of what makes cycling popular in a city.The
idea that 'cycling culture' is the key determinant is simply
false.Most of the European cities where cycling accounts for more
than 40 per cent of daily trips have been through decades of
car-dominated transport systems.For social and environmental
reasons their residents and town planners decided to make a
conscious switch away from a car-dominated system, allocating funds
to footpaths, cycle lanes and facilities to lock bicycles.The
residents of these cities are no more or less likely than any
others to adopt cycling, yet once they had safe cycling facilities
they had a choice.Public education programmes may be necessary to
kick-start the adoption process, but an Owambo or Afrikaner in
Windhoek is as genetically predisposed to ride a bicycle as a Dane
in Copenhagen.Cycling also faces a perceptual challenge, in that it
is regarded in developing countries as a symbol of backwardness,
whereas motor vehicles symbolise progress and development.What
policymakers in developing countries apparently fail to realise is
that a growing number of the world's most important capital cities
are moving away from cars to promote cycling and walking.London
introduced congestion charging in 2003, a system whereby drivers
pay a fee to enter a cordon around the central of the city.This has
brought about a 30 per cent reduction in car use, and surpluses
from the system are reinvested in public transport and cycle
infrastructure.The decrease in car use and an additional 900 km of
cycle lanes have brought about an 83 per cent increase in cycling
in London.Similar measures have seen an increase in cycling in New
York, and there are a growing number of European cities with high
rates due to improved infrastructure.Namibia is even being left
behind by its neighbours, with Cape Town having developed a master
plan for cycling, and Gaborone about to embark on a N$16 million
project to improve conditions for cyclists and pedestrians.The
implications of a transport system that discriminates against the
poor reach up to affect Namibia's top-level approach to poverty
reduction.No government could hope to achieve the millennium
development goals (MDGs), let alone create sustained economic
development, without having a mobile population.Of course, the
problems of a transport system that discriminates against the poor
are not unique to Windhoek, but the Capital must take a leading
role in changing the national agenda.The government, if it is
serious about goals like eradicating poverty and achieving
universal primary education, must begin planning and building the
means for its citizens to gain access to opportunities, to free
themselves. * Michael Linke is founder and Managing Director of the
Bicycling Empowerment Network Namibia, a non-profit organisation
that provides bicycles and bicycle ambulances to HIV-AIDS
home-based care organisations.
