1According to Jacques Lévy, good urbanism is measured on the basis of density and diversity. Urban intensification implies an increase in human activities in a given space; its advantages are above all linked to the proximity principle, but are only effective if urban intensification is integrated into a comprehensive approach that impacts on the various (economic, environmental and social) sectors of the city at the relevant levels.

2However, intensity cannot be ordered; it exists where people meet, walk, take a pause, where one can observe high densities of daily interventions and exchanges. Urban intensity relates to the density of activities, the plurality of dwelling forms, the diversity of populations living in urban spaces, the wealth of forms through contrast and complementarity, but also the way urban space is used, its reversibility and transformation. In order to be complete and successful, urban intensification must combine:

• density of forms, infrastructures and services,

• accessibility to public transport,

• attraction of urban forms,

• quality of public spaces,

• social mixing,

• articulation and diversity of urban functions,

• functionality of open spaces.

3It is also necessary to expand the notions of centrality and density with a temporal as well as cultural dimension, by focusing on the issue of social events and urban development phases. In this sense, Hillbrow and Houghton are interesting examples. Both are old suburbs, and their development over time has led to the establishment of local services and equipments in a balanced manner. Yet, their morphological differences imply significantly different functioning. Hillbrow is a place of exchange, connectivity, culture, services as well as retail trading (on the ground floor of buildings), thereby forming lasting landmarks in the metropolitan landscape. Density in this suburb leads residents to interact strongly with the urban environment. Houghton, a low-density and much landscaped suburb, in addtion to housing integrates middle-sized companies, schools, leisure activities and commercial centres into the urban fabric. Yet, there are few interactions between residents, since people move around mainly by car. There is no node of urbanity per se, nor is there a link between users and centres of intensity. Town planning seeks to organise centres of activity and their networks or intensify their functionalities and symbolics, with a view to improving the usage value of the space.

4Social mixing in recently developed suburbs is generally limited. North Riding is a good example of urban sprawl, where constructions are developed, one estate after another, without any global development plan. Densification over time with construction on empty land, leaves few land opportunities for structural facilities. Based on market principles, urbanisation takes place in a very heavily segmented manner. The mono-functionality of spaces tends to sterilise urban development. Such tendencies are largely amplified by the search for security which, in parallel, leads to the generalisation of closed and enclosed spaces, with open public spaces paradoxically becoming potentially dangerous and, therefore, undesirable places. The only places of exchange and connectivity are the shopping malls that have developed rapidly, according to market trends.

5RDP housing developments are characterised by two main shortages. The first is linked to limited investment for urban development, with basic services such as schools being built late in the development process. The second is linked to the fact that the environment is not very favourable to social and economic integration for low income families. Planning implementation should provide for economic spaces leading to the settlement of local shops as well as community facilities such as churches or nurseries. The low economic attractiveness of suburbs often did not lead to the development of these centres of activities and today, residents only have access to a limited and insufficient number of jobs, shops, services and leisure facilities. Yet, the lack of mobility of residents living in these suburbs and the relative density (reinforced by informal constructions on plots), have led to the emergence of urban intensity, as revealed by the establishment of informal trading in particular.

6The four suburbs under study represent great morphological diversity, generating major disparities in density. There are 1,100 inhabitants per km² in Houghton, 3,000 inhabitants per km² in North Riding, 6,360 inhabitants per km² in Bram Fischerville (excluding informal constructions) and 69,000 inhabitants per km² in Hillbrow. This disparity is represented schematically opposite: each drawn area corresponds to the surface area housing 5,000 inhabitants for each suburb.

Surfaces corresponding to 5,000 people

5.1 Economic Dynamics and Infrastructure

Comparison of Four Case Studies

7For each suburb, the area under study (solid black line on the maps) includes a population of 5,000 inhabitants. Each surface area is then widened by 2 km to make it easier to apprehend interactions with the direct environment. By locating public or private equipments, urban intensity can be highlighted. The relationship between scattered city, dense city and intense city is questioned in the study of these four suburbs.

Hillbrow

Hillbrow

8The reason why households choose specific residential areas to live in, constitutes one of the central problematics of the current urban economy. With Hillbrow being central, households have access to most urban amenities on foot, meaning significantly reduced travelling costs. The suburb contains many historical amenities from the city centre. It also includes structures of “modern” amenities (e.g. theatres, restaurants etc.) as well as “green” amenities, such as parks scattered over the whole sector. Due to this relatively complex structure, Hillbrow seems to meet the basic needs of its residents.

North Riding

North Riding

9On the other hand, North Riding, a recently urbanised suburb, only has a limited number of amenities which are the result of private sector investment, such as shopping malls. Public facilities are very limited.

Houghton Estate

Houghton Estate

10Houghton Estate has a wide range of public services and, more generally, urban amenities, which constitutes a major advantage in terms of local development. This suburb benefits from proximity to the city centre, as well as many public facilities and shops. In addition, the establishment of many office premises along the highway (M1) offers a wide range of possible jobs.

Houghton Estate amenities

Bram Fischerville

Bram Fischerville

11Bram Fischerville, which was built from 1998 to 2010, is characteristic of suburbs planned by the government. 19 000 houses are homes to 90,000 people. The economic activity is very limited and public investment came up only much later (paved roads, schools, parks etc.).

12Yet, today, the suburb is very dynamic, progressively transforming its RDP township image into that of a classic suburb. Private investment creates a dynamic community in many domains (informal trading, entertainment etc.). The distribution of shops throughout the suburb, as a result of individual opportunities, does not create centres of activities, but enables the population to benefit from a few urban components. However, there is still a long way to go before the suburb comes out of the “dormitory town” status.

Localisation of Informal Shops and Facilities: Field Observation

13This map shows the different activities and facilities in Bram Fischerville. Accessibility (main tarred roads) is not the only criterion for the establishment of these activities which are found throughout the sector, with no apparent hierarchy.

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14Public policies want to keep a balance between quality and quantity as far as amenities are concerned, on the metropolitan scale. The reinforcement process of the entire urban offer (housing, activities, services and elements of urban amenities as well as quality of the living environment) for a more diverse, animated and attractive city, does not consist in a simple quantitative increase in population and job densities. Yet, we still find today that amenity densities vary dramatically from one suburb to another.

Number of amenities / km²

15When the number of amenities is worked out per 1,000 inhabitants, differences are even more marked.

Number of amenities / 1,000 inhabitants

5.2 Landscape Infrastructure

Comparison of Four Case Studies

16In Johannesburg, open spaces crystalise the ambiguity of the city which is still marked by fragmentation and inequality. Public space is no longer part of the historical culture of the city and, despite the number of available urban gaps, the city greatly lacks public spaces. Often synonymous with danger when they are not under security, open spaces are enclosed with a view to controlling their usage. Following the patterns and segregation on which the city was built, the old suburbs situated in the north benefit from a great diversity of open spaces used for relaxation and leisure, which are nonetheless often private: vast parks, zoo, and golf courses among others.

Houghton Estate

Houghton Estate

17Houghton Estate is characteristic of the urban structuring of northern Johannesburg, which was organised around golf courses as well as relaxation and leisure parks reserved for a well-off category of population. Closed islands with sizable surface areas, these green enclaves contribute to the fragmentation of the urban fabric and to the maintenance of strong social segregation. Public parks, far from being structuring, suffer from a negative image, tarnished by acts of crime and violence and, as a result, are not much used by the local residents.

Northern suburbs

North Riding

North Riding

18In parallel, the recent urbanisation of the city outskirts was carried out by whittling away natural and agricultural areas, without any preventive measures to maintain biodiversity and ecological corridors. Private contractors, with limited legal constraint, tend to consider the environment as a restriction, not an asset. The streams crossing the northern suburbs flow in the middle of areas where no building is permitted, where maintenance is the responsibility of the city. Left in a natural state, these areas allow for shifting rivers which can turn into torrents during storms. Estate walls define the limits of river banks. Inaccessible, these natural areas are not developed and are closed to residents.

North Riding estates

Watercourse, North Riding

Hillbrow

Hillbrow

19A few parks, built from the very beginning of the suburb, are still found in the urban network of Hillbrow. Highly affected by the population of the suburb, these open spaces host sports grounds, relaxation areas and games for children. Parks are laid out in such a way as to be easily accessible to everyone. However, their size often does not match the actual urban density of the suburb.

Bram Fisherville

Bram Fisherville

20In Bram Fischerville, out of all the components of town planning, it was housing that prevailed. The development plan of the suburb includes 19,000 houses but no structuring open spaces. Only Extensions 12 and 13 (the eastern section of the suburb) include planned sports grounds.

Southern suburbs