Civil Engineering September 2021 | Vol 29 No 8

22 September 2021 Civil Engineering I n 1999, the ‘Moving South Africa’ transport strategy analysis identified systemic failings and inefficiencies in both freight logistics, involving port and rail performance, and public pas- senger transport as two of the most significant transport issues hindering economic development in South Africa. The study suggested approaches towards ameliorating the problems. Over the past 22 years little, if any, progress has been made towards an improvement in these areas; in fact, a World Bank study identified the Port of Durban, the country’s major import and export port for general freight, as among the bottom three of the world’s 351 container handling ports. CONTEXTUAL BACKGROUND For the past seven decades or so, many aspects of the South African transport system have been constrained from operating at optimum efficiency and effectiveness. The problem has been predominant in many fields of transport; this short analysis deals with the fields of public passenger transport and freight transport only. During the first half of this period, the main constraint was that transport policy makers, planners and operators were required to conform to a dominant political ideology in their planning endeavours. While much has been written about the public policy making process, and in this context transport policy, the question arises as to what extent public policy for transport must moulded by political ideological influences. How should public policy makers rationally analyse, debate, consult or even communicate about issues which require the allocation of public resources in an envi- ronment dictated by political and ideological constraints? Historically transport has always been an area particularly vulnerable to political interference, right from the time of the Dr MalcolmMitchell Pr Eng, FSAICE Retired Deputy Director-General of Transport mally2@vodamail.co.za Peter Copley Pr Eng Retired DBSA Transport Specialist petercopley@hotmail.com Reflections on freight logistics and public passenger transport in SA – lost opportunities and future potential