Four park and rides have been set up in
four corners of Joburg, with hundreds of buses and taxis laid on to get ticket
holders to Ellis Park safely and on time for their Festival of Champions games.
INNOVATIVE solutions to the challenges of
hosting the Confederations Cup are unveiled almost daily, it seems. The latest
is iTransie 2 Ellis Park, the City's public transport scheme for the tournament.
It is aimed at cutting traffic during the
event. Football fans will be ferried from four park and ride facilities to the
stadium for matches, and back to their cars after the games.
Metrobuses will be used
A total of 77 buses, including Metrobus and
private buses, and 470 taxis will be used as part of iTransie 2 Ellis Park.
"This transport contribution is a key
component of the City of Joburg's
overall strategy to make the Confederations Cup a success and to showcase our
readiness for 2010," said the mayoral committee member for transport, Rehana
Moosajee, at a media briefing on Thursday, 4 June.
"We have planned iTransie 2 Ellis Park to
be simple, easy and safe. Park and rides will be guarded and well signposted."
iTransie will complement the provincial
transport programme, GauRide, which will shuttle people from across the
province to Ellis Park. Similarly, Johannesburg
fans wanting to travel to host stadiums in Bloemfontein,
Rustenburg and Pretoria
to watch other matches, will also benefit from GauRide.
Both iTransie 2 Ellis Park and GauRide are
run in partnership with the taxi industry.
Moosajee emphasised that using public
transport rather than driving to Ellis Park was a convenient option. "I call on
all ticket holders to desist from trying to use their private cars and
attempting to find parking in the vicinity of Ellis Park. Rather use the
convenience of public transport."
There are four park and ride zones to lower
traffic volumes on routes leading to stadiums. Recently tested during the
Soweto Derby between rival football giants Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates,
the zones are at Bez
Valley Park,
Nasrec Expo Centre, Wits West Campus and the Coca-Cola Dome.
Road signage
Ticket holders for Confederations Cup games have also been urged to learn the
new road signage - aimed at minimising confusion on the roads - around Ellis
Park during the spectacle.
Road signs to help people find their way
The signs, installed on Joburg roads
specifically for the tournament, will help people find their way to various
facilities, including public viewing and park and ride zones.
"There are different types of signage; some
are on the freeway and they will assist fans to find their way in and out of
the city," said Yolisa Mashilwane, the director of management support in the
City's transportation department.
"Some are general way-finding signs within
the park and ride facilities and stadium precincts."
The signage had been installed at strategic
locations and intersections across the city, Mashilwane said. Signs would also
direct people to crucial establishments such as hospitals.
The Johannesburg
metro police department (JMPD) will maintain a strong presence during the
tournament, with 300 officers manning the park and rides and patrolling around
Ellis Park.
JMPD spokesperson Wayne Minnaar said the
unit was ready for the job. "We have worked all the strategies that have been
approved by FIFA."
Prepared
Johannesburg is
ready for the competition. "It is indeed all systems go for Johannesburg to host the Confederations Cup,"
said the member of the mayoral committee for community development, Nandi
Mayathula-Khoza.
"The City has hosted a number of
international events quite successfully ... We have no doubt our visitors will be
entertained, and not only in the stadium."
Johannesburg's Ellis Park stadium is one of four venues in four cities chosen to
host the football spectacular, which starts on 14 June and ends on 28 June.
Ellis Park is billed to stage both the opening match, between hosts South Africa and Asian champions Iraq, and the
final.
The City is happy with the status of Ellis Park
Mayathula-Khoza noted that the City was
happy with the status of Ellis Park and the area around the stadium. "Ellis
Park stadium and the precinct are complete; we are excited about that.
"The venue was refurbished for the Confederations
Cup and the World Cup in 2010.
Rea Vaya
The Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system will not be operational during the
Confederations Cup, although phase 1A - running from Regina
Mundi Church
in Soweto to
Ellis Park - has been completed.
Moosajee said the City had decided to
"align ourselves with national developments". President Jacob Zuma indicated in his State
of the Nation address on 3 June that negotiations with the taxi industry on
the BRT would begin on 11 June under the stewardship of Transport Minister
Sibusiso Ndebele.
"We remain steadfast in our commitment to
empower the taxi industry and ensure that operators will be no worse off than
when they were operating taxis," Moosajee said, seeking to allay fears in the
industry.
Moosajee said the City was pleased that the
industry had agreed to join iTransie 2 Ellis Park and GauRide. "We hope that
this partnership will be carried forward to the BRT and for transport provision
for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™."
The City is confident that the BRT will be
fully complete by the end of August and that buses will be operating.
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