International Transportation (69) 1 | 2017 26 Managing public transport in-Windhoek The implementation of a new public bus service for-Windhoek, Namibia Public bus service, sustainable urban development, Transport project The Sustainable Urban Transport Master Plan (SUTMP) aims at developing a sustainable, affordable, accessible and efficient public transport system for Windhoek. The “MoveWindhoek” project, a Namibian- German coalition, addresses the challenge to implement a modern public bus system through a diversified, long-term approach. It includes the modernisation of the bus fleet, capacity development, awareness campaigns as well as steering and funding models. It is implemented by City of Windhoek, with support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Ernst-Benedikt Riehle, Ursula Hein M oving Windhoek’s transport system to a sustainable, affordable, accessible, attractive and efficient transport system - this is the aim of a coalition of the Government of the Republic of Namibia, represented by the Ministry of Works and Transport (MWT) and the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development (MURD), the City of Windhoek (CoW) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It focuses on public and non-motorized transport and is supported through the “Transport, Mobility, Logistics” project of GIZ in Namibia. In 2013, the Sustainable Urban Transport Master Plan (SUTMP) was developed. It serves to enable decision makers in the transport sector to implement measures according to a long-term vision for sustainable transport through public participation [1]. The Namibian Cabinet endorsed the plan in 2014, a crucial step for its implementation. In early 2016 the first new bus lines, together with newly procured, modern busses, were introduced to Windhoek’s citizens. The implementation is continuing and is proving to be a complex challenge. Among others, Public Transport has the image of Photo: GIZ Transport Namibia BEST PRACTICE Public Transport International Transportation (69) 1 | 2017 27 Public Transport BEST PRACTICE transport for the poor, the city faces capacity and funding constraints, the legal planning basis does not yet provide for integrated approaches and scheduled bus services is a new and thus unknown concept for Namibia. Current situation On a daily basis, CoW has about 60 busses in operation, on a network of 30 routes and 7 lines, to serve its customers. These usually synonymous words denote two separate types of operation: Routes are direct connections between vaguely specific start and endpoints as well as customer-requested stops, representing the old, insufficient system. Lines are newly introduced connections with dedicated bus stops, a schedule and service in both directions. Lines shall become a full-day service. All but one of the lines meet at a central interconnection point to allow passengers to transfer. Bus operations for both lines and routes begin currently as early as 5: 30, running until approximately 9: 00 in order to bring employees and students to work and school. In the afternoon, operations run from 13: 00 through 18: 00-19: 00. Service is sparse on Saturdays and currently non-existent midday on weekdays, at night, and on Sundays. In February 2016, the City of Windhoek launched the new system with seven bus lines, which stem directly from the SUTMP planning process. For this purpose, a bus network plan was developed. It indicates the bus lines, their respective bus stops and interchange points (figure 1). To enhance the system’s quality, 26 new low-floor buses were procured, funded jointly by CoW and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as part of the MoveWindhoek project and brand. They operate exclusively on the new lines. In 2017, CoW plans to shift operation completely to the new network of 14 lines, including the seven existing lines. All lines are planned to finally operate according to fixed schedules at frequencies of 20-60 minutes; the span of service, however, will be limited by the existing resources. The demand for a public bus service however is high. Estimates indicate that, at present, around 10,000 passengers ride Windhoek’s buses every day. A recent survey revealed that 60 % of bus users are female and at the same time the majority (twothirds) live in households earning less than 2,000 NAD (about 145 EUR) a month, with more than 40 % earning less than 1,000 NAD. With current fares for single bus rides of 6 NAD (0,42 EUR), and 5 NAD with a Figure 1: Bus route map for Windhoek Source: GIZ Transport Namibia Figure 2: Street scene in Katutura/ Windhoek Photo: GIZ Transport Namibia International Transportation (69) 1 | 2017 28 BEST PRACTICE Public Transport rechargeable “SmartCard”, the importance of busses as daily means of transport for a big part of Windhoek’s population becomes obvious. Its relevance for economic participation and enhancement of livelihoods is high. In general, Windhoek’s citizens spend up to 25 % of their monthly disposable income for transportation, which is high in international comparison [2]. Moreover, alternatives for daily commute are scarce. Windhoek residents’ primary mode of transportation is the ubiquitous privately operated shared taxi, which accounts for 38 % of all trips [2]. Taxis are hailed exclusively on the street, usually carrying one or two passengers during off-peak hours, and up to four going in the same direction during the morning and afternoon peak hours. Approximately 7,000 taxis ply the streets of Windhoek. Taxi fares from the northwestern suburbs range from 10 NAD (0,70 EUR) for trips to the city centre and surrounding suburbs, to 20 NAD for trips to outer suburbs. Non-motorized transport, although contributing to about 30 % of Windhoek’s modal split [2], is to date unsatisfactory, due to missing or deficient infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists (figure 2). Windhoek has only one short bicycle lane next to the Grove Mall, a shopping centre in the southern part of town; consequently, virtually no Windhoek resident uses bicycles for nonrecreational purposes. The number of pedestrians involved in accidents is high. It is also a core aspect of enhancing a public transport network, as about 90 % of bus users walk to and from the bus, thus being dependent on non-motorized transport infrastructure. The introduction of a new public bus service thus aims at the alleviation of several development challenges. Implementation - a diversified approach The Master Plan is a long-term approach to develop Windhoek’s transport system until 2032. Developing public transport services, transforming mobility perception and awareness, providing non-motorized transport opportunities and ensuring an integrated approach to land-use and transport planning is a complex and long-lasting process, which is addressed within this Namibian-German project through different aspects. Steering structure The implementation of the SUMTP is guided through a comprehensive steering structure. It contains of different committees. The “Flexible Thematic Units” shall coordinate technical implementation and monitoring. The “Technical Steering Committee”, which consists of Management representatives from the key stakeholders, is coordinating the implementation. It further presents to the “Steering Committee”, which consists of the Permanent Secretaries of MWT and MURD, the CEO and high representatives from CoW and GIZ. The Steering Committee was officially launched in October 2015. Funding model The financial side of the SUTMP has been another focus area for the implementation. Currently CoW is financing the bus operations within its core budget. This has proved to be a challenge and therefore governmental and other funding sources are considered. A dedicated grant for sustainable mobility solutions from governmental resources through the involved ministries is under preparation. This grant will be unique within Africa and not only provide funding for the capital city, but also be accessible for other towns in the country. Further funding streams, from advertising space to parking management in the CBD, are under debate as well. Capacity building A key aspect is also to train the respective staff in various fields in order for them to reach autonomous execution of their responsibilities. In the course of the capacity building approach, GIZ is hosting trainings for employees of CoW as well as for the MWT. With the support of GIZ, a German expert for the implementation of the new bus system is employed at CoW. Her work includes operational planning, fleet management, public transport infrastructure and capacity building within the Public Transport Division of the City of Windhoek. GIZ is also supporting the University of Namibia (UNAM) and the Namibian University of Science and Technology (NUST) with specific study paths in engineering and infrastructure planning. Survey During the implementation process, it is necessary to monitor the impact on the users, which are affected directly by changes of the system. GIZ conducted a customer satisfaction survey in October and November 2016. At that point in time, the new lines had been operated for half a year and prior to the City’s plan to switch entirely to a new system of 14 lines. The survey reached about 10 % of daily bus users and provides a comprehensive and insightful picture of the customer perspective, their concerns and challenges as well as opinion on the public bus service. As the economic situation described above shows a majority of low income households use the bus service. Thus it is not surprising that the mayor reasons for customers using the bus is to safe money (67 %) and secondly for security reasons (12 %). The overall satisfaction with the bus system is poor, with women rating it distinctively lower than men. At the same time the survey revealed that the new lines where rated distinctively better than the former routes (63 % fair to excellent compared to 42 %). Finally, while the value for money was rated very good, aspects such as waiting time, travel time and personal space were considered negatively (figure 3). Institutional development The organizational set-up of the bus operations has been identified as another area of interest. Currently, the Division of Public Figure 3: Satisfaction with the bus service, survey 2016 Source: GIZ Transport Namibia International Transportation (69) 1 | 2017 29 Public Transport BEST PRACTICE Transport is within the main structure of the city’s administration. Therefore, financing, HR and other administrative processes underlie standard procedures, which do not allow prioritization and effective service delivery. Besides rolling out the operations to a separate entity, further commercialisation is contemplated to integrate existing private businesses in the future public transport system. The aforementioned taxi businesses will be vital to ensure an efficient feeder structure to the public transport corridors. Awareness campaigns To enlarge the visibility and enable identification for partners and citizens, the Master Plan is implemented under the campaign “MoveWindhoek” (figure 4). All activities, materials and communication is done in accordance with the specially developed Corporate Identity Manual. It sets the basis of communication and information of the project. Prior to the introduction of new lines, a first awareness approach was introduced - the so called “Information Bus”. Once a week a bus and information stand was positioned at different spots throughout the city, especially in the northern, most populated parts, in Katutura. City employees as well as GIZ members organized the busses and conducted creative activities (e.g. Quizzes) to inform the public about the new system. Additionally, to the targeted information campaigns such as the information bus, continuous information through various forms of media is necessary to keep the public informed. The project has a designated homepage (www.movewindhoek.com.na) as well as respective Facebook and twitter account. However, the aforementioned survey revealed that the majority of current customers is best reached through newspapers and radio. It is important to investigate continuously how to best inform the public and potential customers and provide updates on new developments. Challenges The ongoing implementation of the SUTMP for Windhoek is currently undergoing a thorough review. This already revealed that implementation is ongoing, however progress is slow and some milestones were not achieved as foreseen, due to various challenges. Due to driver and bus shortages, many of the ambitions regarding all-day service and frequency could not be immediately realized. Furthermore, drivers’ behaviour is often still not appropriate and prevents the lines from following a schedule and dedicated tracks. Windhoek’s bus stops have few of the amenities that bus passengers await in developed countries. In 2013, of Windhoek’s 160 bus stops, 45 % had no shelter and 85 % no sign [2]. While these statistics are now outdated due to the introduction of the lines, they give a solid picture of current conditions. Even where shelters exist, the benches are often broken, and the bus stop signs that do exist have no customer information at all - not even a list of routes or lines stopping at the station. Travel times of bus passengers often exceed 1-1.5 hours depending on the destination, even for trips from the suburbs to the city centre, despite a distance of roughly 15 km. These long travel times result primarily from heavy traffic during rush hour, long dwell times resulting from chaos (pushing, fighting to board bus) at heavily frequented bus stops, and frequent inspection stops by City Police to check fare collection records. Travel times for passengers traveling from one end of a line to the other can be even longer, as most travel via the city centre, thus encountering additional traffic and following a circuitous route. Windhoek so far has no dedicated bus lanes, despite heavy traffic on main arterial roads during peak times. During peak travel times - 5: 30-7: 00 h and 4: 30-6: 30 h - buses are filled to the brim. Standing passengers completely fill the aisles; slow service often means passengers must endure the crowding and heat for upwards of an hour. Passengers are regularly left behind due to lack of space, and the crowding likely generates personal safety issues for women in particular. Many of the aforementioned difficulties can be narrowed down to the quite limiting funding base of the public transport system as well as the organisational lay-out of the bus operations. Ensuring sufficient funding for the operation and development of the network will be a crucial factor for the future development of this flagship project for Namibia. ■ The “Transport, Mobility, Logistics” project is implemented by GIZ and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. For information on the project, please contact the Project Manager, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Heinrich Semar (heinrich.semar@giz.de). SOURCES [1] International Transportation (67) 1 | 2015, 30-33 [2] Ministry of Works and Transport; City of Windhoek; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (2013): Sustainable Urban Transport Master Plan for Windhoek including Rehoboth, Okahandja and Hosea Kutako International Airport: Final Report. Windhoek. Ernst-Benedikt Riehle Technical Advisor, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Windhoek (NA) ernst-benedikt.riehle@giz.de Ursula Hein Technical Advisor, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Windhoek (NA) ursula.hein@giz.de AUF EINEN BLICK Der Sustainable Urban Transport Master Plan (SUTMP) hat das Ziel, ein nachhaltiges, erschwingliches, barrierefreies und effizientes öffentliches Verkehrssystem in Windhuk zu entwickeln. Das „MoveWindhoek“ Projekt, ein Deutsch-Namibisches Gemeinschaftsprojekt, adressiert die verschiedenen Herausforderungen in der Umsetzung eines modernen ÖPNV Systems durch verschiedene langfristige Ansätze. Es enthält die Modernisierung der Busflotte, Capacity Development, Aufklärungskampagnen sowie Aufbau von Steuerungs- und Finanzierungsmechanismen. Es wird von der Stadt Windhuk, mit Unterstützung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, durchgeführt. Figure 4: MoveWindhoek logo