In South Africa, mini bus taxis are a major component of the transport backbone 

Informal transport accounts for 80% of all trips in medium sized cities of the emerging world.

In South Africa, mini bus taxis are a major component of the transport backbone of any major settlement. It is unfortunate how little publically available information we have about this integral aspect of the South African settlement system.

The absence of reliable and up-to-date spatial data relating to the South African minibus taxi industry undermines our ability to optimally plan towards addressing the generally fractured urban structure of South African settlements through transport-oriented interventions. Our continued inability to do so is a major reason why even major developments have informal taxi ranks spawning in unplanned and opportunistic locations in and around the periphery. An unfortunately common sight.

So when we came across this beautiful map on the taxi network in Cape Town crafted by Where is My Transport we were quite impressed.

Capturing and mapping data on the intricate informal taxi industry is no easy job, however, it appears Where is My Transport has done it with both style and precision. A nice touch to the map series is how the map theme conforms to one of the world’s most recognisable transport maps; the London Underground Map.

Pretty!

Check out the Where is My Transport project here