Cape Town’s annual Mobility Infrastructure Summit has called for a shift towards people-centred transport planning, with speakers highlighting pedestrian safety, integrated public transport, data-driven infrastructure management and alternatives to private cars.
Source: Supplied
Held at DHL Stadium on Thursday, 1 October, the first day of Transport Month, the summit brought together transport professionals, engineers, technology specialists and government stakeholders to discuss how infrastructure, public transport, data and innovation can support a safer, more connected and accessible city.
Putting pedestrians first
Professor Megan Bruwer of Stellenbosch University highlighted the need to prioritise pedestrians in transport planning, noting that pedestrians accounted for 68% of traffic crash fatalities in Cape Town in 2025.
She pointed to international examples where investment in walking and cycling infrastructure has helped make these modes a more natural part of urban mobility.
The focus on pedestrian safety comes as Cape Town considers how transport infrastructure can better accommodate people moving between different modes and parts of the city.
Integrating transport networks
Sanral’s Randall Cable joined a panel led by Sean Glass, the City’s Transport Planning and Network Management manager, which examined integrated traffic management, road safety and network capacity.
Cape Town’s Transport Management Centre has access to substantial data on where and when pedestrians move across freeway networks. This information can help inform infrastructure planning and enforcement measures.
Marianne Vanderschuren of the University of Cape Town’s Centre for Transport Studies also emphasised the importance of better-connected public transport, seamless transfers between services and safe first- and last-mile connections.
She said smart mobility should be about people rather than technology.
Source: Supplied
Infrastructure gets smarter
Andrew Geel of BVi Consulting Engineers highlighted work on reusing reclaimed asphalt, as well as research into roads affected by grey water in Khayelitsha and surrounding areas. The research has informed the City’s engineering standards.
The summit also considered a shift from reactive to predictive infrastructure management, using sensors, real-time data and digital tools to identify problems earlier, improve maintenance and protect critical infrastructure.
Twelve exhibitors showcased technologies ranging from road safety products and CCTV and thermal network cameras to large-scale artificial intelligence models.
"The future of mobility is not simply about building more roads or putting more technology into our networks. It is about designing a city around people, making every part of the journey safer and more connected, and giving Capetonians real choices in how they move around the city.
"The message from this summit was clear: better integration, smarter infrastructure and collaboration will be critical to keeping Cape Town moving forward," said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Councillor Quintas during their opening remarks.
Moving beyond private cars
The discussions also highlighted the need to provide more alternatives to private car use, particularly through walking, cycling, public transport and travel demand management.
"Good infrastructure is the infrastructure nobody notices. People only notice it when something breaks, so our measure of success is how rarely residents have to think about us. That said, headlines about Cape Town’s congestion, while not always reflecting the full picture, are a reminder that we need to move with greater urgency on alternatives to the private car.
"There has never been a better time to accelerate the implementation of the City’s walking, cycling, public transport and travel demand management strategies as we embrace a future centred on people first. As one speaker put it at the summit: the future is here, what we do today, we do for our children and their children," concluded Councillor Rob Quintas.
