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Date : 30/10/2006
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government
Title: Jacobs: Gauteng 2006 Public Transport Summit


Speech by the Gauteng MEC for Public Transport, Roads and Works, Ignatius Jacobs, at the Gauteng 2006 Public Transport Summit

Friends
Colleagues
Ladies and gentlemen

Context to the Gauteng 2006 Public Transport Summit

More and more investors around the globe are discovering the province of Gauteng. This is the fourth largest economy on the African continent: South Africa, Egypt, Algeria and then Gauteng.

We have grown at 5,6% over the last four years, the biggest regional economy, making it one of the best economic performers in South Africa and the rest of Africa.

The middle class has grown (some unintended consequence) and partly contributes to major congestion on our roads), however the growth in the middle class is a good sign post for economic growth.

Annual percentage increase, of the province poor that crossed the poverty line (out of poverty trap). The province is clearly a magnet that attracts many people; however, the biggest challenge is rapid urbanisation. Gauteng province is also home to Africa's finest talent and brains, from all over the continent.

Gauteng's developmental path is very unique if comparison and contrast must be drawn with other provinces/countries. Our strategy is not linked to classic economic modelling, which relies heavily on the exporting of labour intensive, low-priced manufactured goods to the global economy.

Other context issues:

* successful 2005 and 2006 Transport Month campaigns
* the creation of popular platforms for robust debates on the state of public transport in Gauteng, and the country in general
* 2005 and 2006 Car Free Day campaigns * establishment of the Gauteng Commuter Organisation
* successful mobilisation of the Gauteng community to participate in the promotion of public transport
* rising levels of awareness of traffic congestion on sustainable mobility, in general, and the economy, in particular
* 2010 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup games taking pace in Gauteng.

Gauteng strategic approach to transport within the 2010 context

The overall goal and purpose of the Gauteng Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works, is to create the necessary transport and socio-economic infrastructural conditions that allow people of our province to actively participate in socio-economic development programmes. The provision of an affordable and efficient transport system that reduces overall household expenditure on travel costs and decreases actual time spent on travelling is critical to achieving this goal.

The Gauteng City Region (GCR) which is the heavily urbanised core of the province, comprising the three metropolitan municipalities and its secondary cities will be the most economically productive metropolis in Africa, ranking high in connectivity to the global network of cities.

South Africa is hosting the FIFA soccer world cup for the first time in Africa. This poses a challenge to the nature and capacity of transport system that would enable our country to move hundreds of thousands of additional public transport users, with effectiveness and efficiency. Efficiency in transport operations serves as one of the key indicators for the successful implementation of the FIFA Soccer World Cup. The case of providing a world class transport system in 2010 coincides with programmes aimed at turning Gauteng into a Globally Competitive City Region. This has a bearing on the development of transport infrastructure and the need to create appropriate system to enhance an integrated approach to transport operations.

In terms of the Bid Book for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, "South Africa commits itself (from a transport perspective) to support the complete success of the 2010 football events by ensuring the successful mobility of the general populace and spectator base, and to providing very high quality and high efficiency transport services to the members of the FIFA community." A significant reality in Gauteng is that although it is constituted from six local authorities, transportation functionality is not linked to political boundaries. Therefore transport management and provision needs to be addressed as a whole throughout the province. Although two metropolitan authorities will act as host cities for 2010, all local authorities and provincial government have a significant role to play in ensuring an effective transport system as a whole for the province.

The Gauteng Transport Consultative Forum indicated a need to focus on legacy transport issues which by nature should look beyond 2010 World Cup finals. The forum indicated that the legacy approach should touch on:
* how we want public transport to look like
* focus on priority areas for legacy projects.

Gautrain Rapid Rail Link has been hailed as providing opportunities to achieve provincial and national objectives of public transport integration and transport transformation. This is crucial in the contribution towards making the 2010 World Cup transport plans successful.

Learning from other countries and sharing best practices

Germany hosted the 2006 FIFA Soccer World Cup finals. The transport system that was put in place was hailed as being one of the best in recent times. This inevitably provides a fertile ground for South Africa to establish relationships with Germany to offer their experience in terms of successfully putting together an effective transport plan for the World soccer event. We are, therefore, involved in a series of discussions with our German counterparts, in relation to imparting knowledge in hosting such an event, from a transport perspective, and also sharing best practices.

In this regard, The Gauteng Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works, in collaboration with Goethe Institute, is hosting a two-day conference on governance and mobility, which centres on approaches to the development of effective and efficient transport infrastructure and transport operations.

At today's conference, we are pleased to host some of the best skill and knowledge managers, in the world, in the form of invited speakers and panellists, and these include mostly speakers from companies and institutions that were largely involved and assisted the German Government to implement a successful FIFA Soccer World Cup. We are honoured that you have sacrifices to offer your wealth of experience to our country and our province, so that we may take the quality of our transport services to higher levels.

This conference seeks to help us to achieve the following:

* to assist the Gauteng Provincial Government in putting together a transport system responsive to the needs of the soccer loving nation of the world
* show the importance of focusing on transport legacy projects
* importance of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in transport infrastructure
* the importance of the role Intelligent Transport Systems in making better and smarter use of road space
* the need for intergovernmental co-operation and governance
* the relationship between Transport Planning and Traffic Management
* Transport Demand Management related to Soccer World Cup events
* demonstrating the need for a Multi-Modal Approach
* showing the importance of Traffic Safety and Traffic Conflicts techniques
* nonmotorised planning and working with communities
* importance of establishing a unified electronic and integrated ticketing systems
* the importance of linkages with airports
* Public Transport Branding and importance of mini-bus taxi sector
* gain knowledge on special events and management models.

The conference shall cover a range of topics important in the transport industry, such as rapid rail linkages, modal integration, non-motorised transport, innovative transport public finance, intelligent transport systems, spatial planning, bus rapid transits, commuter rail, airports linkages importance of minibus taxis, travel demand management, management models for specialised services, transport sector volunteers, the case of co-ordinated transport in Germany.

We are here today to speak about the role of government and all stakeholders in the development of an integrated, effective and efficient public transport system, especially in Gauteng province. Our country's winning of the bid to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup also provides us with more opportunities for investment in public transport infrastructure.

What should inform our approach to transport infrastructure programmes must be the strategic objectives of ensuring that we attain a public transport system that is accessible, safe, affordable, comfortable, reliable and environmentally friendly, for all our people. This should also take into account the immense challenge of hosting a successful 2010 FIFA World Cup in three and half year's time.

Such infrastructure development programmes must also enable us to build sustainable communities and to leave a legacy of public transport that would become a backbone for the further growth and development of the economy of our province, in view of the challenges of the 21st Century, the African Century.

Some of government's key roles include the following:

* ensuring that public transport becomes a mode of choice, and not a mode of force, for the people of our province and our country
* creating more platforms for effective public participation, and, therefore, deepening democracy
* ensuring that infrastructure development programmes are informed by the strategic objectives of creating more jobs, thus, contributing to the millennium goals of halving unemployment and reducing poverty by 2014
* mobilising Gauteng communities to contribute towards finding better and smarter ways of using road space through the promotion of public transport as well as non motorised means of travel, such as cycling and walking
* in the same vein, champion the improvement of the quality of public transport services through a strengthening of the role of civil society organisations
* encourage local investment in public transport by both the private sector and local government
* help improve the quality of life of the people of our province through the delimitation of the emission of harmful gasses to the environment as a result of high levels of fuel consumption; in the same vein, reduce the cost of travel
* enable a rapidly urbanising city region, such as Gauteng has become, to integrate its public transport infrastructure, through integrated spatial development and planning
* provide for more integration of transport infrastructure, thus, laying basis for the creation of a unified and seamless system, especially public transport
* at the same time, ensure that this city region becomes globally competitive, in terms of both the quality of public transport services and the speed with which people are able to access such services
* address the challenge of the negative impact of congestion on our roads on the economy.

This brings to bear the important role of public transport in rapidly urbanising communities such as Gauteng, including the following:

* contributing to sustainable mobility through an integrated approach to travel demand management, in view of the fierce competition, for road space, between private cars, road freight and public transport
* supporting densification policies, in spatial development and planning, through the provision of more means to move the greatest number of people on public transport, in the shortest possible time
* reducing car dependence through the provision of a reliable public transport system, coupled by reliable passenger information
* reducing the phenomena of traffic congestion and stemming its negative effect on economic activity
* creating more jobs and reducing unemployment and poverty
* providing motorists with viable options and sustainable means of travel
* freeing up much needed urban space for alternative and better use
* saving energy and creating conditions for its efficient use
* reducing pollution and saving the environment
* reducing road fatalities
* making a case for more investment in public transport through the promotion of better land use planning and the sharing of best practice.

Here in Gauteng, we are currently involved in programmes such as:

* the recent completion of a new Intermodal Public Transport Facility in Randfontein, that puts taxis, buses and rail under one roof, providing a one stop shop for all public transport services
* advocacy for public transport friendly infrastructure as a new way of utilising our road network
* utilising the development of transport infrastructure to bridge the historical gap between the first and the second economy
* ensuring that transport becomes a conduit for access to economic opportunities
* accelerating economic growth and development for the benefit of all our people through tangible support programmes for established participants, the historically disadvantaged and the new entrants
* the creation of empowerment platforms and instruments that would encourage entrepreneurship, to name but a few.

There are other challenges, which face us as a province, such as the rapidly growing traffic congestion on our roads.

On a major route like the Ben Schoeman, for instance, not only has the start of the morning peak periods moved earlier, but the number of trips out of peak times is approaching 70% of peak flows. These phenomena can also be observed on most other major arterials.

Demand forecasts up to 2010 indicate that current road traffic can grow by as much as 39% in the ten-year period from 2000 to 2010, mainly due to private vehicle trip demand increasing by 38% (from 360 000 to 497 000 in the morning peak hour.).

The capacity of the road network is under pressure. By 2010, three and a half years from now, average travel speed will reduce by 25%. The extent of the road network carrying 10 000 vehicles or more in the peak hour will increase from 44km to 116 kilometres.

On the other hand, our roads development plan seeks to address the following challenges in our province:

* support the economy to be internationally competitive, thus contributing to Gauteng becoming a globally competitive city region
* provide access to marginalised communities, thus contributing to bridging the divide between the first and second economy
* ensure effective mobility in highly populated metropolitan areas, especially through maximising the use of existing road space
* act as catalysts to promote regional integration or spatial planning initiatives e.g. development corridors, combined with transport nodes that create a nexus with economic nodes
* ensure safe access to prime tourist regions and sites such as the Cradle of Humankind, Soweto and Dinokeng.

Research also indicates that:

* 50% of motorised passenger trips, in our province, are made on public transport and 50% using private transport
* most trips in the peak periods are to school (47%) and work (32%)
* three quarters of public transport users have incomes of R1 600 or less a month
* 68% of households do not own any cars
* 13% of households generate no peak period trips
* 40% of households generate no work trips...reflecting high unemployment and a lack of income.

Our programmes must help us to address these challenges in a manner that encompasses the contributions and ideas of the broadest spectrum of society, in our province and our country.

Closure

Our gathering, here today, must truly be a meeting of minds, engaged in a unified effort to provide our country with a rare opportunity to break the barriers to the development of a better public transport system. Such a system must also enable us to give the world a truly African World Cup, but one that is properly informed by rapid developments in a highly competitive global arena. I am confident that we will be able to achieve our objectives. I thank you.

Enquiries:
Alfred Nhlapo
Tel: (011) 355 7532
Cell: 083 376 8496
Issued by: Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works, Gauteng Provincial Government
30 October 2006

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