Moving Mbombela: a Multi-Modal Transportation Hub Reconnecting South Africa's Lowveld

Abstract

In the heart of Mpumalanga Province in South Africa, Mbombela serves as a gateway and crucial hub in the Lowveld. Despite its strategic location, the city and its surrounding communities face infrastructural challenges such as poor road conditions and limited transportation access. Therefore, there is a disconnect between key destinations, all of which hinder the Region’s potential. This Thesis explores the transformative potential of a multi-modal transportation hub in Mbombela aimed at addressing the city’s connectivity, past social injustices and eco-tourism. The Thesis unpacks the history of the Eastern Railway Line, examining its origins and the poignant legacy of the night trains that ferried forced labourers from Ressano Garcia to Johannesburg. It identifies the gaps in Mbombela’s connectivity and assesses how the selected site, with its historical significance, can serve as a focal point for addressing these issues. By identifying and integrating important existing road and rail networks with community hubs and tourist attractions, the proposed Transportation Hub aims to revitalize the city’s infrastructure and socio-economic landscape. Central to this undertaking is the concept of connectivity. The main program is derived from this, combining bus and train terminals with mixed-use spaces, including retail, government facilities, restaurants, and informal trading zones, promoting a more dynamic and interconnected urban environment. The Hub’s design seeks to integrate parametricism and Africanism, creating an architectural language that resonates with local culture, while embracing innovative design principles. It also prioritizes accessibility and inclusivity, positioning it as a new urban space that acts as a catalyst for renewed community engagement, economic empowerment, and cultural exchange. Additionally, the Thesis explores the potential synergy between transportation and commemoration. The design aims to reassess the richness, or the lack thereof, of the typical traditional monument or statue. Looking at local practices and rituals as forms of memorial; in conjunction with architecture and public space, the memorial becomes the space rather than a distinct object. The space given back to the people is the antithesis of the experience of being confined to the cattle cars and coal trucks used to transport forced labour. It is a spatial form of remembrance embedded within the daily life of the city. This space aims to evoke reflection and remembrance through its architectural form and materiality, creating a meaningful connection to the past while serving as a hub for movement – another freedom that was not afforded to those forced to work in the mines. The project aims to rediscover the transport hub in an African city and rehabilitate the transport network of the Lowveld, providing an opportunity for growth and connectivity. At the same time, it seeks to empower communities and honour their histories, recognising that understanding our future direction requires an awareness of where we have come from. Through this approach, the project envisions a future where infrastructure not only supports movement and development ,but also serves as a powerful tool for remembrance and cultural continuity.