Soweto, Gauteng Province, South Africa

Transport | Rail | Road | Economy

🇿🇦 Soweto is a township of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for South Western Townships. Formerly a separate municipality, it is now incorporated in the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, Suburbs of Johannesburg.

Transport The suburb was not historically allowed to create employment centres within the area, so almost all of its residents are commuters to other parts of the city.

Rail Metrorail operates commuter trains between Soweto and central Johannesburg. Soweto train stations are at Naledi, Merafe, Inhlazane, Ikwezi, Dube, Phefeni, Phomolong, Mzimhlophe, New Canada, Mlamlankunzi, Orlando, Nancefield, Kliptown, Tshiawelo and Midway.

Road The N1 Western Bypass skirts the eastern boundary of Soweto. There is efficient road access for many parts of the region along busy highways to the CBD and Roodepoort, but commuters are largely reliant on trains and taxis.

The N12 (named the Moroka Bypass) forms the southern border of Soweto.

A new section of the N17 has been built, connecting Soweto with a 4 lane road link to Nasrec.

The M70, also known as the Soweto Highway, links Soweto with central Johannesburg via Nasrec and Booysens. This road is multi lane, passes next to Soccer City in Nasrec and has dedicated taxiway lanes from Soccer City eastwards.

A major thoroughfare through Soweto is the Golden Highway. It provides access to the N1, N12 and M1 highways.

Minibus taxis are a popular form of transport. In 2000 it was estimated that around 2000 minibus taxis operated from the Baragwanath taxi rank alone.

A Bus rapid transit system, Rea Vaya, provides transport for around 16,000 commuters daily.

PUTCO has for many years provided bus commuter services to Soweto residents.

Economy Many parts of Soweto rank among the poorest in Johannesburg, although individual townships tend to have a mix of wealthier and poorer residents. In general, households in the outlying areas to the north-west and south-east have lower incomes, while those in south-western areas tend to have higher incomes.

The economic development of Soweto was severely curtailed by the apartheid state, which provided very limited infrastructure and prevented residents from creating their own businesses. Roads remained unpaved, and many residents had to share one tap between four houses, for example. Soweto was meant to exist only as a dormitory town for black Africans who worked in white houses, factories, and industries. The 1957 Natives (Urban Areas) Consolidation Act and its predecessors restricted residents between 1923 and 1976 to seven self-employment categories in Soweto itself. Sowetans could operate general shops, butcheries, eating houses, sell milk or vegetables, or hawk goods. The overall number of such enterprises at any time were strictly controlled. As a result, informal trading developed outside the legally recognised activities.

By 1976, Soweto had only two cinemas and two hotels, and 83% of houses had electricity. Up to 93% of residents had no running water. Using fire for cooking and heating resulted in respiratory problems that contributed to high infant mortality rates (54 per 1,000 compared to 18 for whites, 1976 figures.

The restrictions on economic activities were lifted in 1977, spurring the growth of the taxi industry as an alternative to Soweto's inadequate bus and train transport systems.

In 1994, Sowetans earned on average almost six and a half times less than their counterparts in wealthier areas of Johannesburg (1994 estimates). Sowetans contribute less than 2% to Johannesburg's rates. Some Sowetans remain impoverished, and others live in shanty towns with little or no services. About 85% of Kliptown comprises informal housing. The Soweto Electricity Crisis Committee argues that Soweto's poor are unable to pay for electricity. The committee believes that the South African government's privatization drives will worsen the situation. Research showed that 62% of residents in Orlando East and Pimville were unemployed or pensioners.

There have been signs recently indicating economic improvement. The Johannesburg City Council began to provide more street lights and to pave roads. Private initiatives to tap Sowetans' combined spending power of R4.3 billion were also planned, including the construction of Protea Mall, Jabulani Mall, the development of Maponya Mall, an upmarket hotel in Kliptown, and the Orlando Ekhaya entertainment centre. Soweto has also become a centre for nightlife and culture.

Johannesburg, South Africa 
Johannesburg, South Africa
Image: Photo by Clodagh Da Paixao on Unsplash

Soweto was ranked #1202 by the Nomad List which evaluates and ranks remote work hubs by cost, internet, fun and safety. Soweto has a population of over 1,270,000 people. Soweto also forms one of the centres of the wider Johannesburg metropolitan area which has a population of over 10,500,000 people.

To set up a UBI Lab for Soweto see: https://www.ubilabnetwork.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/UBILabNetwork

Twin Towns - Sister Cities Soweto has links with:

🇮🇩 Mamuju, Indonesia
Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license | Nomad

Antipodal to Soweto is: -152.134,26.26

Locations Near: Soweto 27.8664,-26.2602

🇿🇦 Roodepoort 27.867,-26.15 d: 12.3  

🇿🇦 Johannesburg 28.04,-26.205 d: 18.4  

🇿🇦 Randfontein 27.701,-26.182 d: 18.7  

🇿🇦 Mogale 27.771,-26.103 d: 20  

🇿🇦 Krugersdorp 27.767,-26.1 d: 20.4  

🇿🇦 Randburg 27.982,-26.099 d: 21.3  

🇿🇦 Sandton 28.054,-26.106 d: 25.4  

🇿🇦 Alexandra 28.083,-26.1 d: 28  

🇿🇦 Evaton 27.871,-26.538 d: 30.9  

🇿🇦 Ekurhuleni 28.159,-26.21 d: 29.7  

Antipodal to: Soweto -152.134,26.26

🇺🇸 Kahului -156.466,20.891 d: 19272.7  

🇺🇸 Wailuku -156.505,20.894 d: 19270.6  

🇺🇸 Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 19261.4  

🇺🇸 Maui -156.446,20.72 d: 19258.4  

🇺🇸 Hilo -155.089,19.725 d: 19228.1  

🇺🇸 Honolulu -157.85,21.3 d: 19213.7  

🇺🇸 Pearl City -157.969,21.394 d: 19212.1  

🇺🇸 Kapa'a -159.333,22.083 d: 19149.9  

🇺🇸 Līhuʻe -159.35,21.967 d: 19141.1  

🇺🇸 Lihue -159.35,21.967 d: 19141.1  

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