Household transport expenditure in Sub-Saharan African cities: measurement and analysis

In Sub-Saharan Africa the cost of transport faced by city dwellers, particularly the poor, tends to add to their travel and economic difficulties. Knowledge of the burden of transport expenditure in the household budget seems essential for passenger transport policy formulation in order to improve their travel conditions and social equity. The literature review and the three case studies (Dar es Salaam, Niamey, Ouagadougou) show that estimates of travel expenditure are partially conditioned by survey data collection methodologies and by the choice of equivalence scales used to compare the standard of living of households. According to consumption and expenditure survey data, the relative amount spent on transport increases as household expenditure rises. Conversely, the share of transport decreases as income rises when analysing travel survey data. The sensitivity to the equivalence scale is tested for several transport expenditure indicators: the share of travel expenditure by household budget quintile, the concentration indices for public and private household transport expenditure and the average monthly expenditure per person on public and private transport. Results also highlight the fact that transport is a major component of household expenditure, that there are considerable inequalities between households and that regular use of motorized transport is unaffordable for poor populations. These findings have implications for both improving expenditure data collection methodologies in the transport area and formulating pro-poor urban policies.