Honest about risk
We never say “safe”. Routes are lower-risk, built from statistics and local knowledge. We tell you what we avoided and trust you to make the call.
About us
A small idea with a serious job:
get people home well.
Tsamaya started as one driver’s question — why does my map send me through the worst part of town just to save two minutes? — and grew into a navigation app that puts risk on the map.
The name
Tsamaya / tsa-MAH-ya /
It’s Sesotho and Setswana for “go” — from the everyday blessing tsamaya sentle, “go well”. That’s the whole promise in two words: not a guarantee, just a wish for a good journey, the way South Africans say goodbye in every language.
There’s a second meaning we love: in kasi football, a tsamaya is the move that sends the defender the wrong way — going exactly where the trouble isn’t. Which is the entire point.
Tsamaya — Go well.
What we believe
Our principles
Local knowledge counts
Data alone misses the corner everyone in the neighbourhood already avoids. Curated corridors fold real human knowledge into the model.
Built for South Africa
Made in Johannesburg, for the way people actually drive here — not a global template with our cities bolted on.
Nothing hidden
Open thresholds, visible zones, a clear disclaimer. You can always see why a route bends the way it does.
Who’s behind it
An independent, self-funded project.
Tsamaya is built and maintained by Kyle Kimble — a Johannesburg-based Chartered Accountant who taught himself to ship a mobile app because the problem wouldn’t leave him alone.
It’s not backed by a big company or a marketing budget. Every metro mapped, every line of routing logic and every rand of running cost has come from one person’s nights and weekends — which is exactly why sponsorship and donations make such a difference.
“Most maps optimise for the fastest line. On South African roads, the fastest line isn’t always the one you want to be on. Tsamaya is my attempt to give drivers that choice.”
— Kyle Kimble, founder
Want to follow along — or pitch in?
Whether you’re a driver, a sponsor or just curious, we’d love to hear from you.