{"id":2866,"date":"2023-01-10T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ingenius.ecoledesponts.fr\/?p=2866"},"modified":"2025-07-29T15:00:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T13:00:10","slug":"abidjan-and-the-challenge-of-urban-mobility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ingenius.ecoledesponts.fr\/en\/articles\/abidjan-and-the-challenge-of-urban-mobility\/","title":{"rendered":"Abidjan and the challenge of urban mobility"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Flickr fr.zil<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Motorized flows play a key role in the functioning of the urban area. There are virtually no bicycles and few pedestrian facilities, although walking accounts for most daily travel1<\/a><\/sup>. Roads of all sizes (highways, streets, interchanges) are usually cluttered with informal markets. Informal bus stations spontaneously appear along major roadways, most often at intersections and in proximity to important public institutions. Urban spaces, which are inseparable from the streets, are just as multifaceted: squares, markets, bus stations, apartment buildings and gardens. Comprising a patchwork of complete and incomplete works, they attest to the clash between poor and rich, motorized transport and pedestrians, urban and rural communities, and provide insights into urban functions and how they are being reconfigured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traffic jam  in Abidjan<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Semp\u00e9r\u00e9, 2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

An inefficient transportation system<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the existing tools for improving urban transportation (improving roads, developing public transportation offerings \u2013 bus, railway, guided, lagoon and cable car systems \u2013 logistics platforms and services, upgrading intersections, urban highways, bridges, bypass roads etc.), mobility is an essential aspect of the sustainable development of a territory, and is a major challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Promoting smart and inclusive cities is a key concern for African countries today. Such cities must combine the various needs of urban populations and the development of an “efficient transportation system”, since the traditional transportation system is neither sufficient nor suited to current needs. Therefore, it is not only the urban infrastructure gap that prevents African cities from functioning well, but also the lack of urban planning, as well as regulatory and institutional obstacles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use public transportation in Abidjan !<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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This interactive map allows you to visit the city following the paths of different bus and train lines. \u00a9 Contributeurs d\u2019OpenStreetMap.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The smart city: the future of mobility<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

However, there are solutions. They are largely based on the use of new technologies, new buses, building smarter infrastructure and leveraging the momentum of the informal sector. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Greater Abidjan area has committed to an extensive investment and infrastructure modernization program. One of the top priorities is to rebalance the supply and demand in the high-capacity transportation sector: provide service for more users, over a longer distance, without increasing travel time or cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peri-urban links to the city centre are one important area for development. The goal is to support urban growth \u2013 which the city endures more than it manages \u2013 to regain control over the highly  problematic, yet strategic sectors of transport and mobility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Map of infrastructure projects in Abidjan<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 MCC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Promising examples<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In Abidjan, the introduction of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) which has now been widely accepted, was a challenge in cities where public transportation had operated since the late 1980s through concessions granted by authorities and the development of what are referred to as “small-scale” (artisanal) modes of transport2<\/a><\/sup>. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), which were tested and found to be somewhat effective in countries in Latin America, Asia and the Maghreb, have been presented as the solution that is likely to be the most effective. In Africa, new projects are emerging, benefitting from support from international organizations (Ouagadougou, Conakry, Douala). Others are coming to fruition (Dakar, Abidjan, Accra), or have been deployed for several years (Johannesburg, Cape Town, Lagos, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam and Addis Ababa).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experiences in Africa have shown, however, that small-scale transport (on demand) is unlikely to be entirely replaced by these “large-scale” modes, for reasons relating both to the technical specifications deployed (BRT Light, light rail system \u2013 TLR) and the lack of the fiscal resources needed to subsidize these transport systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn about Abjidan’s metro project,
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