Spatial Transformation and Nodal Planning in the City of Pietermaritzburg: The Case of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) along Edendale/Northdale Corridor

Spatial transformation is critical for the growth and development of cities and has impacted global economies that shape urban realities. In South Africa, spatial development was manipulated by apartheid planning legislation, which divided places along racial lines. In particular, the infamous and notorious Group Areas Act 1950 stipulated that “everyone is to be officially classified into racial groups, and all would have to live in areas specifically set aside for the exclusive occupation of a legally defined group”. Urban sociology is a good prism through which spatial justice is at play in a country’s cities. To date, the approaches adopted by the post-apartheid South African government aimed at dealing with spatial challenges inherited from apartheid have been inefficient in engendering spatial transformation. Amongst these has been the deployment of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) as a sustainable approach for achieving spatial transformation as envisioned in the country’s Spatial Development Vision 2050. There has been an increase in the literature that demonstrates the benefits of TOD in dealing with spatial inequality, improving accessibility, and providing economic upliftment. TOD developments are especially useful along corridors and in nodal developments. Using case study research approach, this paper compares international best practices with the view of assessing the TOD developments applied in Edendale and Northdale townships in the KwaZulu-Natal province. As a secondary aim, the paper gives an appraisal of the extent to which the Edendale-Northdale corridor development plans, address spatial inequality issues within the Msunduzi municipality. Through this, the paper opens an avenue from which contemporary planning challenges can be tackled using TOD development as an approach.