New-look public transport system for Johannesburg
New-look public transport system for Johannesburg
Public transport in Johannesburg will look markedly different by the time large numbers of visitors arrive in the city for the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup.
Central to the City’s new plans is a new Bus Rapid Transit System (BRT) that will place 85% of Johannesburg residents within 500 metres of a trunk route or feeder corridor. Known as Rea Vaya, which means “We Are Going”, it will see the introduction of modern new buses transporting passengers along dedicated routes across the city.
“We will provide Citizens of Johannesburg with faster, cheaper and safer public transport and a more reliable alternative to the private car,” says Ms Rehana Moosajee, the Member of the Mayoral Committee for Transport.
Ms Moosajee was part of a City delegation led by Executive Mayor, Clr Amos Masondo, who in August visited Bogota, the Capital of Colombia as well as Perreira, also in Colombia, to look at the operation of their public transport networks. The delegation also included a larger representation from the minibus taxi industry, 10 representatives each from Top Six Taxi Management and the Regional Taxi Council. Similar systems to Rea Vaya are also operating successfully in cities such as Jakarta, Boston, Sydney and Edinburgh.
The intention of the new Rea Vaya system is to cut down on traffic volumes, decrease traffic jams and gridlock and drastically reduce travelling times between various destinations in the City. It forms part of Johannesburg’s Strategic Public Transport Network (SPTN) designed to facilitate the transport of people and goods and connect various parts of the city more effectively.
The most important feature is that the buses will travel along dedicated median bus ways rather than kerbside bus lanes. These bus ways will have a distinct coloured surface to separate them from the lanes used by ordinary traffic.
The bus ways will ensure dedicated lanes for the buses and minimise conflicts with left-turning vehicles. Along most portions of the routes the system will operate with a single bus way next to a mixed traffic lane in each direction.
Buses will travel along the major trunk routes at intervals of between 1 to 3 minutes during peak hours and no longer than ten minutes waiting periods in off-peak periods. The system will operate between 05h00 in the morning and midnight.
Bus stations will be situated every 500 meters along the routes and passengers will enter these enclosed facilities through a system of pre-board fare collection that will include smart cards. This system will also ensure the safety of passengers making use of the service.
Seven routes will be introduced during the first phase of Rea Vaya:
Nasrec – Newtown – Ellis Park
Dobsonville – CBD – Troyeville
Lenasia – Highgate – Sunninghill
Randburg – CBD
Alexandra – CBD – Regina Mundi
Braamfontein – CBD
CBD circle route.
In terms of infrastructure implementation rollout, the Phase 1A network, made up of about 40 kilometres of BRT roads and 48 stations will be completed by April 2009, in time for the Confederations Cup. The Phase 1B network, which is approximately 86 kilometres and 102 stations, will be implemented by April 2010 in time for the FIFA Soccer World Cup.
These main routes will be supported by cross-cutting feeder services that will transport passengers to and from the bus stations along the routes.
It is important to emphasise that the Rea Vaya BRT system will not just be provided for the 2010 World Cup. The City is using the pressures of 2010 to deliver and leave a good and sustainable public transport system of a legacy nature.
To meet the expected high demand the buses will be large, 22-metre articulated vehicles designed to facilitate rapid boarding and alighting. It will also be fully accessible to persons with disabilities. Clean fuels and modern propulsion systems will ensure that the environmental impact of Rea Vaya will be minimal.
Vehicles will be operated on a concession basis opening up new business opportunities to existing bus and taxi operators in the City. It will be a subsidy-free system which will level the playing field between the minibus-taxi industry, Metrobus and other privately owned bus companies.
“Rea Vaya will not compete with other transport systems such as Metrorail or the Gautrain,” says Ms Moosajee. “This is an urban transport network that will feed into and complement existing networks to ensure the most effective movement of people across the city.” The first phase will intersect with the Gautrain at three key points along the route – Sandton, Rosebank and Park Station.
“We want to provide Johannesburg with an efficient, integrated system that features a wide array of services – trunk services, feeder vehicles, pedestrian corridors, bicycles, metered taxis, private cars, as well as a liveable environment with safe urban design features to contribute to a good quality of life for Joburg citizens,” she says. Park-and-ride facilities will allow private motorists to make use of Rea Vaya for parts of their journeys across the city. Based on international experience Rea Vaya aims to attract between 10 and 20 percent of car users to public transport.
Ms Moosajee says that the Rea Vaya tariffs will be “equal or less than the fares charged by existing services.” The system will make use of a distance-based fare structure, designed to ensure that it will be affordable to low-income families living on the periphery of the City.
Capital funding of about R780 million has already been dedicated to the project from funds allocated to the SPTN and public transport improvement this financial year. The remainder of the funds will come from a variety of sources including the national government’s Public Transport Infrastructure and Systems Fund, the City’s budget and international agencies.
For more information on this exciting Johannesburg initiative, members of the public should feel free to visit the City’s Rea Vaya BRT Stalls at the following Shopping Malls:
The Rosebank Mall on Saturday 06 October 2007, from 10h30 to 14h00;
The Southgate Mall on Saturday 13 October 2007, from 10h30 to 14h00;
The Jabulani Mall on Saturday 20 October 2007, from 10h30 to 14h00.
Ends
For more information:
Kgamanyane Maphologela
Media Liaison
Public Liaison Department
City of Johannesburg
Telephone: 011 407 7271
Fax: 011 403 3494
Cell: 082 771 4874
E-mail: stanmapho@joburg.org.za.
