Snarl-ups: Why Jo’burg is victim of own success

Skyline of Johannesburg, South Africa, on July 29, 2025.

Photo credit: Reuters

Johannesburg, the economic heart of South Africa, has long been synonymous with the relentless daily grind of traffic congestion. For decades, the ‘City of Gold’, as it is nicknamed, for being close to the Rand region gold mines has had sprawling highways and arterial roads were a motorist’s worst nightmare, costing residents millions of lost hours and negatively impacting the country’s economic productivity.

However, recent data suggests a significant shift is underway, with the city's initiatives beginning to yield success.