Quantifying Traffic Congestion in Nairobi

Abstract: This thesis aims to give insight into a novel approach for quantifying car traffic in developing cities. This is necessary to improve efficiency in resource allocation for improvements in infrastructure. The project took form of a case study of neighborhoods in the city of Nairobi, Kenya. The approach consists of a method which relies on topics from the field of Topological Data Analysis, together with the use of large data sources from taxi services in the city. With this, both qualitative and quantitative insight can be given about the traffic. The method was proven useful for understanding how traffic spreads, and to differentiate between levels of congestion: quantifying it. However, it failed to detect the effect of previous improvements of infrastructure.