How cities and countries get ready for big events like the World Cup and the Olympics, what challenges they face, and what opportunities these mega-events can create.
The protests have spread. This week, they reached Pretoria where demonstrators demanding better housing, schools, roads and sewage systems threatened to disrupt the World Cup.
Nthamaga Kgafela, a researcher at the independent South African Institute for Race Relations, said the protests had escalated since the election last year of President Jacob Zuma, whose pro-poor image had raised hopes of change.
Gauteng Community Safety spokesperson Thaphelo Moiloa on Thursday warned taxi operators not to try to disrupt a test run on the much-awaited BRT system.
Taxi industry operators have increasingly expressed their dissatisfaction with the BRT, fearing it would result in income and job losses. They are also not happy about the time limits placed on their operating permits.
One of the biggest taxi industry umbrella bodies, the National Taxi Alliance (NTA), recently presented a document to Transport Minister S'bu Ndebele claiming "intellectual property rights" over the routes to be used by the BRT system.
