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Rea Vaya has been referred to as a beacon of hope for public transport in the city as it reaches new heights with its routes and buses.
JOBURG'S executive mayor, Amos Masondo, has praised the work of the City's Bus Rapid Transit system, Rea Vaya, describing it as a "beacon of hope".
He made the comments during his State of the City speech on 11 March. The speech had the theme, “The year of working together to speed up effective service delivery to the people”.
High praise for the City's Bus Rapid Transit system
The system tops the City’s public transport services, with the mayor saying that public transport was advanced through the “Bus Rapid Transit [BRT] system’s Rea Vaya, which continues to be a beacon of hope on work we [the City] are doing on transport”.
He reflected on the development since operations began at the end of August 2009. Since then, passenger trips on the trunk route service indicated a steady growth.
Masondo also announced the introduction of the full phase 1A of Rea Vaya services, which included feeder and complementary routes in Soweto and the inner city, targeting 69 000 passengers a day.
The City was confident that Rea Vaya would provide a world-class transport service – through Park and Rides – for spectators flocking to the city for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. “During the Confederations Cup, we [the City] successfully transported an average of 20 000 spectators per match through park and rides,” said the mayor.
BEGINNING
In many ways the Rea Vaya BRT journey is only beginning. The City and our partners will continue to extend Rea Vaya and create a broader integrated transport system that will be second to none in the world. This includes integration with the Gautrain and other bus systems, as well as upgrading the rail system, and taxi ranks.”
Rea Vaya was the product of “an exhaustive process of public consultation and negotiations”. He acknowledged the roles played by the taxi industry, particularly the Taxi Steering Committee for its involvement in making Rea Vaya what it was.
“We [the City] salute and appreciate the credible manner in which the Negotiation Facilitation Team continues to carry out its work,” he added.
“Let us all enter the negotiation process. Negotiations are about reconciling different viewpoints. Let us make compromises, not for its own sake, but to ensure the improvement of the quality of life of all of our people.”
The City had reached “a remarkable degree of consensus on all aspects of Rea Vaya”, he continued, which included routes the new buses would be travelling and participation from the taxi industry as both owners and drivers. The taxi industry had recognised the significant economic opportunities that arose from Rea Vaya, including ownership/shareholding, the driving of vehicles and maintenance.
Although difficulties had been noticed, Masondo said, “we [the City] have and we will continue to grapple with all the complex challenges. We remain optimistic that we will achieve all that we have set out to do.”
He urged the industry to consolidate on progress to date. “The doors of the City remain open. Let us all enter the negotiation process.”
However, he warned: “Those elements who are trying to derail the process through intimidation or threats of violence will meet with the full force of the law. We will not allow anarchy to derail a public transport system that is so vital for the future of Johannesburg and its residents.”
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