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The importance of road safety, values and proactive transport solutions were recently discussed as the City’s department of transportion took to the streets of Joburg’s western suburbs.
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S part of Public Transport Month, attention has been drawn to the City’s transport values.
Speaking during a road show to Region C – in the western suburbs of Johannesburg – the mayoral committee member for transport, Rehana Moosajee emphasised that for road safety to be maintained, the City’s values had to be respected.
The City’s transport values highlight the need for all road users, from pedestrians, drivers to public transport users, to be aware of:
- being accountable for their actions
- co-operating with other road users
- being honest in all they did
- respecting others and
- showing understanding and empathy with others – in other words, ubuntu.
Public transport is under the spotlight
The values were identified as one of the ways people could positively and proactively tackle growing social problems.
During October, national Public Transport Month, the City of Johannesburg’s department of transport ion has been taking this message across the seven regions.
The department’s delegation visited Region C on Friday 24 October, where a discussion was held at the Roodepoort Civic Centre on road use, public transport options, safety and traffic management. The discussion involved a range of role players from all sectors: mayoral committee members, councillors, transport department officials, business representatives and residents.
Moosajee, responding to a question on how drivers and road users can help to ensure safety on the roads, spoke of the need for an attitude of respect and tolerance.
On accountability, Moosajee noted that every road user is accountable for their behaviour and all drivers must take reasonable steps to accommodate other users of the road.
She also pointed out that it is important for all road users to work together to ensure a safe travel experience for everyone using the road.
“The bottom line of all these values is for drivers to accommodate other drivers to avoid accidents,” Moosajee said.
Roy Panday from the Roodepoort Chamber of Commerce and Industry suggested that people should be made more aware of the City’s transport values.
Proportional representation councillor for the African National Congress, Willie van der Schyf suggested, “The first thing we can do in making people aware of these values is by taking ownership of them as council.”
He added: “We need to be familiar with them and understand them fully before we embark on a journey of making everyone aware.”
The panel decided for the transport values message to be taken seriously they had to be taken into the schools and taught to youngsters, who are at an impressionable age.
“If we succeed with them (the children) we will succeed because they will grow up to be responsible drivers,” Moosajee said.
One of the key values of the City’s transport department
Giving a visual representation to the City’s ideals, each value has a related emblem. These were unveiled in 2007, as one of the Public Transport Month projects.
The symbols also aim to inspire civic pride and remind of how all is interdependent.
In designing the symbols, the City worked with different stakeholders, including commuter organisations and the taxi industry.
“The reason why these values are being depicted as symbols is because symbols appeal to a wide range of people and have been proven effective in facilitating behavioural change,” said Moosajee at the launch.
Each symbol features the golden dot found in the centre of Johannesburg’s official logo. In addition the symbol carries an element of road infrastructure in relation to transport. It also has beadwork, to illustrate the traditionally South African culture.
Another aspect raised during the transport discussion was the Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), under the topic: Adopting a New Public Transport System.
Issues highlighted included security matters and how the taxi industry is to benefit from the BRT project.
Although Rea Vaya is expected to bring much positive change in the public transport industry, Moosajee reminded everyone, “Rea Vaya is not the complete solution to transport challenges in the City. There are other ways that people can use to help ease the flow of traffic, for example people can start ride sharing schemes, cycle to work or even walk to their places of work.”
The road shows started in Region A, in the northern suburbs and townships, on Monday 6 October and the last was in Region E, in Sandton and Alexandra and surrounds, on Tuesday 28 October.
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