Developing the well-located land index to establish smart human settlements for the ekurhuleni municipality, South Africa

Since the dawn of democracy in 1994, the spatial form of South African cities has shown minimal change. Spatial segregation and fragmentation in cities still persist, particularly in Ekurhuleni, despite numerous and well-formulated policy documents such as the National Development Plan (NDP) and ‘Breaking New Ground’ that call for spatial transformation and integration. This is mainly because there are inadequate tools to assist planners in identifying strategically located land and weak implementation mechanisms. Consequently this study outlines a Planning Support System (PSS) called the Well-Located Index (WLLI) which uses a Geographic Information System (GIS) and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to assist planners in identifying, quantifying and visualising well-located land in Ekurhuleni. The study also demonstrates that the WLLI PSS is an invaluable tool in advancing evidence-based decision making that will nurture sustainable and smart cities in South Africa. The WLLI will facilitate targeting smart and well-located land as well as provide the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality with clear guidelines on where to place future development if the legacy of spatial segregation is to be reversed.