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03/07/2008 12:29 PM - (SA) City plans for a smooth ride
The event was organised by the Cape Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry and sponsored by Absa bank. In terms of the plan, Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) will play a major role on several routes throughout Cape Town. BRT systems had been chosen because they offered similar benefits to a light rail system, but at a fraction of the cost. The system would involve putting dedicated bus and taxi lanes on a number of routes around the city and reorganising the bus and taxi industry under a single smart card system. The first phase, Zille told delegates, would be complete by 2010. The idea was a self-sustaining system funded by an increased number of users and it was hoped this would eliminate the need for the present provincial bus subsidy of R480-million. She said the goal was to get 20% of commuters out of their cars and she pointed out that private car travel would also speed up as the BRT system took public transport "out of the way". The City has already employed an international transport expert who worked on the BRT system in Bogota. The system has since been introduced in major cities like Paris, Los Angeles and Brisbane as well as several other South American cities. Zille said the system in Bogota was particularly relevant for Cape Town as the Colombian city is rife with crime and the private transport industry is just as difficult to manage as the local industry. She added that the SA Rail Commuter Corporation was investing heavily in better trains and stations "while the City is proposing to improve safety at train stations and transport interchanges by closing them off in secure precincts, assigning dedicated security guards, providing weather protection and introducing access by smart cards".
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