The Bus Rapid Transit system, which features dedicated bus lanes, is set to revolutionise the way people travel around Johannesburg

PUBLIC transport will look markedly different by the time visitors arrive in Joburg for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

This is because the City is planning on providing a faster, cheaper and safer public transport system as an alternative to private cars. The intention is to cut down on traffic volumes, decrease traffic jams and gridlock and drastically reduce travelling times between various destinations in the city.

When complete, the project will consist of over 300 kilometres of bus lanes traversing the inner city and surrounding suburbs and townships.

This plan – the Bus Rapid Transit system – is based on creating city-wide dedicated bus lanes used by a fleet of new modern buses and will ensure more than 80 percent of all local residents will be within 500m of a public transport route.

Based on international experience the system aims to attract between 10 and 20 percent of car users to public transport.

Initially seven routes will be introduced:

• Nasrec – Newtown – Ellis Park;
• Dobsonville – CBD – Troyeville;
• Lenasia – Highgate – Sunninghill;
• Randburg – CBD;
• Alexandra – CBD – Regina Mundi;
• Braamfontein – CBD; and
• CBD circle route.

Complementing existing networks
It is envisaged that the system, called Rea Vaya (We are going), will complement existing and new taxi, rail and Metrobus schemes. The main routes will be supported by cross-cutting feeder services that will transport passengers to and from the bus stations.

“Rea Vaya will not compete with other transport systems such as Metrorail or the Gautrain,” says the mayoral committee member responsible for transport, Rehana 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.”

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.

The buses will be large, 22-metre articulated vehicles designed for easy and rapid access and are also designed to cater for people with disabilities.

Buses will travel on dedicated median bus ways rather than kerbside bus lanes. These will have a differently coloured surface to separate them from the lanes used by ordinary traffic.

The system will operate between 5am and midnight and it is envisaged that there will be buses every one to three minutes during peak hours and about every 10 minutes during off peak times.

Stations will be situated every 500m along the routes. Park-and-ride facilities will allow private motorists to make use of Rea Vaya for parts of their journey across the city.

The project is similar to systems operating successfully in cities such as Jakarta, Boston, Sydney and Edinburgh.