The use of census data, and modern cloud-based software, as a tool in urban growth modelling is a sustainable route for long-term urban planning, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) senior researcher Quintin van Heerden said on Friday.

In this regard, he told delegates at a CSIR open day, held on World Statistics Day, that the council had implemented a cloud-based urban growth simulation platform just outside of the US.

The innovative shared awareness and integration platform, Van Heerden explained, used models for future research and development, and provided access to these models to various entities, such as municipalities.

“The platform can give you an idea of what we are now able to do [in terms of spatial planning and urban growth]. We can now add layers, like priority areas, which is available to the end-users, like the municipality,” he elaborated.

With the help of this platform, municipalities, and other entities, can now set up an entire scenario using their development project and run a simulation in the cloud to visualise its performance in the browser, before executing the project in real time.

This provides an opportunity for end-users to improve and adjust development plans before implementation.

The CSIR – using its platform – is trying to better align with Built Environment Performance Plans, as well as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

“Better data would allow us to develop better models. This will, in turn, allow us to get better answers for better-framed questions, and this will help us to do better planning and ultimately lead better lives,” Van Heerden stated.

Also speaking at the open day, CSIR competence area manager for transport systems and operations Dr Mathetha Mokonyama stated that, especially with regard to transport’s future, entities would need to design human settlements that allow people to walk or cycle.

Additionally, public transport systems would need to be designed to become a sustainable option for longer trips, he added.

“All of this design is dependent on innovation, which is required to design and improve transport services in South Africa,” Mokonyama told delegates.

He further highlighted the critical importance of undertaking large-scale surveys before implementing an equitable and just transport system in South Africa.

Transport systems and operations’ challenges lay in planning, he said.

In this regard, when looking towards urban growth, Mokonyama said some of the relevant debates in this domain still needed to continue focusing on the limitation of utility-based evaluations, the value of a person’s time spent in public services and would need to incorporate equity to cater for the “transport disadvantaged”.

Lower-income individuals are likely to travel less, he said, considering that access to transport is dependent on employment and opportunities to make a living.

“Going forward, we cannot ignore inequalities when designing passenger transport services, especially in South Africa. More in-depth statistical analyses are required, including spatial planning to identify poverty traps,” Mokonyama averred.

The same concept could be applied to environment and sustainability concerns, with CSIR senior researcher Dr Sibusisiwe Makhanya stating that “part of making a city sustainable, is ensuring that the air that we breathe is clean”.

A lack of this planning and development, she said, leads to stunted growth, which is something that South Africa cannot afford.