Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      Blue Label Telecoms to change its name as restructuring gathers pace

      11 July 2025

      Get your ID delivered like pizza – home affairs’ latest digital shake-up

      11 July 2025

      EFF vows to stop Starlink from launching in South Africa

      11 July 2025

      Apple plans product blitz to reignite growth

      11 July 2025

      Nissan doubles down on South Africa despite plant uncertainty

      11 July 2025
    • World

      Grok 4 arrives with bold claims and fresh controversy

      10 July 2025

      Bitcoin pushes higher into record territory

      10 July 2025

      Cupertino vs Brussels: Apple challenges Big Tech crackdown

      7 July 2025

      Grammarly acquires e-mail start-up Superhuman

      1 July 2025

      Apple considers ditching its own AI in Siri overhaul

      1 July 2025
    • In-depth

      Siemens is battling Big Tech for AI supremacy in factories

      24 June 2025

      The algorithm will sing now: why musicians should be worried about AI

      20 June 2025

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025
    • TCS

      TCS+ | MVNX on the opportunities in South Africa’s booming MVNO market

      11 July 2025

      TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network

      7 July 2025

      TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan

      4 July 2025

      TCS | Tech, townships and tenacity: Spar’s plan to win with Spar2U

      3 July 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies

      27 June 2025
    • Opinion

      In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

      30 June 2025

      E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

      30 June 2025

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      AI and the future of ICT distribution

      16 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CambriLearn
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » News » Uber Movement traffic data website launched in SA

    Uber Movement traffic data website launched in SA

    By Duncan McLeod26 September 2017
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp

    Gauteng has become the first region in Africa to become part of Uber Movement, Uber’s free website that provides the public and urban planners with anonymised data about traffic flows.

    The website provides detailed information about travel times across cities where Uber Movement has been launched. The South African launch provides data for both Johannesburg, South Africa’s biggest city, and Pretoria to its north.

    Users can drill down into a range of information about traffic flows based on the day and time of the week. Uber hopes the traffic pattern data, collected over years from GPS-connected Uber vehicles, will be used by city planners to improve transportation networks.

    Uber trips occur all over cities, so by analysing a lot of trips over time, we can reliably estimate how long it takes to get from one area to another

    The data on the website is free to the public, provided they log on using their Uber credentials.

    “Uber trips occur all over cities, so by analysing a lot of trips over time, we can reliably estimate how long it takes to get from one area to another,” the company said in a statement when it first announced Uber Movement in January 2017.

    “Since Uber is available 24/7, we can compare travel conditions across different times of day, days of the week, or months of the year — and how travel times are impacted by big events, road closures or other things happening in a city.”

    Uber sub-Saharan Africa GM Alon Lits said the Uber Movement website will be improved constantly as more data is collected from driver vehicles.

    Data sets

    “It’s crucial we make use of technology and data to improve the way our cities move and the way we plan our cities into the future. If we don’t, we won’t move quickly enough to address the needs of urbanisation,” Lits said.

    Yolisa Kani, country head of public policy at Uber, said the company hopes to bring the Uber Movement data to all South African cities in which the company operates. “We hope Cape Town is the next city, based on the number of trips there,” she said, but added that many other cities worldwide are next in line for the roll-out.

    Uber data sets show how and where people use the taxi-hailing app in Johannesburg (including Pretoria), Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth.

    Anonymised data from February 2016 shows that Johannesburg, perhaps unsurprisingly, is the biggest Uber city in South Africa, with 174 000 active riders at the time. The busiest time for the company is around 6pm on Friday evenings, though Saturday evenings are also a peak time.

    Cape Town had 112 000 active riders, with Friday evenings also the busiest time. Durban, which had 31 000 active riders, had equal peaks on Friday and Saturday evenings. Sundays are typically the quietest days across all South African cities. — © 2017 NewsCentral Media



    Alon Lits top Uber Uber Movement
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleInterview: Gerrit Smit on why the global tech rally is far from over
    Next Article Cities need to come to the party on fibre roll-out

    Related Posts

    South African law is failing gig-economy workers

    12 June 2025

    ‘Afrikaans Uber’ sparks controversy

    27 January 2025

    Uber bakkie service launched in South Africa

    5 December 2024
    Company News

    $125-trillion traded: Binance redefines global finance in just eight years

    11 July 2025

    NEC XON welcomes HPE acquisition of Juniper Networks

    11 July 2025

    LTE Cat 1 vs Cat 1 bis – what’s the difference?

    11 July 2025
    Opinion

    In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

    30 June 2025

    E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

    30 June 2025

    South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

    17 June 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.