CSIR Smart Mobility

Pretoria's identity as South Africa's administrative capital, combined with its congestion patterns and growing commuter pressures, shapes what smart mobility research actually needs to solve here. CSIR Smart Mobility addresses transport engineering challenges specific to Gauteng's context—from public transport integration to traffic management systems that work around load-shedding constraints and pothole-damaged roads. Their focus spans autonomous vehicles, electric mobility infrastructure, and systems-level transport optimisation rather than point solutions. The city's sprawl, the mix of formal and informal transport modes, and the infrastructure limitations created by deferred maintenance all inform their research direction. They work on engineering problems that are distinctly South African, where solving for smart mobility means designing within real constraints rather than theoretical ones.