![]() ![]() Informal transit, though not without problems, has become essential infrastructure in many parts of the world. ![]() To that end, the company includes specific information in its data collection around factors like lighting, or disability access at transit stations, or whatever other information is relevant to a specific place wherever possible, to empower as many users it can with information. While having a complete picture of a city’s transportation options is helpful for planning and city management, WhereIsMyTransport’s primary goal is assisting the end user, the commuter. You already have these cities that are asset-rich, they’re just information-poor, and technology and digitalisation can bridge that divide. While the struggles with Uber continue, this strategy exemplified one way local solutions met local needs. One subversive way these disgruntled drivers got around the app was by “ going karura”, or using it to connect with a passenger and estimate a trip price, then negotiating with the passenger and completing the ride off the books. Shortly after the company arrived in Nairobi, Kenya in 2015, Uber drivers began to go on strike over complaints of low wages, long hours and few worker protections (complaints shared by Uber drivers in the US and elsewhere). In fact, ingenious informal transit drivers have been able to “disrupt” these companies. These on-demand forms of informal transit have been a sort of precursor to disruptive ride-share apps Uber and Lyft. “They were working flat-out through the weekend to ensure that commuters were able to get updates on which stations were shuttered, which lines were closed and some of the new routes that were being opened up.” Disrupting the transport landscape “ it was amazing how the team within Mexico City activated,” says de Vries. The data sets update almost daily to ensure that WhereIsMyTransport is representing what it calls “ground truth”, confirming that the information people receive matches their lived experience. ![]() Now, even with the initial survey of the transport landscape done, people continually update information as routes change – work that became crucial on the weekend of 9 January. “Sometimes that means stopping points that aren’t necessarily sanctioned, but it’s a stopping point, so we believe you should represent it,” says de Vries. In Mexico City, where it has had a presence since 2018, a team of on-the-ground collectors initially spent months thoroughly mapping the Metro rail system, the Metrobús system and informal modes of transit, and submitted all the data to be organised. Much in the same way these informal transit systems are community-based solutions to transportation needs, WhereIsMyTransport relies on local knowledge by hiring residents to collect the data they map. “You already have these cities that are asset-rich, they’re just information-poor, and technology and digitalisation can bridge that divide.” “There is an opportunity to bring digitalisation into an ecosystem in a way that can have a positive impact,” says de Vries, whose interest in improving mobility began when he was a student at the University of Cape Town. They’re also adept at responding to market demand, easily adjusting schedules, routes and practices in accordance with the needs of commuters. In addition to meeting transportation needs, informal transport methods are a source of employment and complement official public transit routes by serving harder-to-reach areas. Transportation is one aspect of an informal economy that makes up some two billion workers worldwide, primarily in non-Western countries throughout Asia, Africa and Latin America.Ī 2000 UN Centre for Human Settlements report lays out the ways that for decades, informal transit networks have filled in gaps to become vital parts of city infrastructure. ![]() Informal modes of transportation, everything from the microbuses of Mexico City to motorbikes and pedicabs, form a vital part of transit networks in locales around the world. For commuters in Mexico City in January, the Google Maps update closed an essential information gap when it was most needed when one of the most widely used modes of transportation, the Metro, was temporarily disabled, people could access the full scope of alternatives available to them. ![]()
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