Honourable minister
Honourable premier
Honourable Members of the Executive Council
Honourable members of the provincial legislature
Government officials
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
We are all in agreement that the year 2010 is a seminal year for the country and our Province. The state of readiness of our transportation system for the 2010 FIFA World Cup is already under extreme scrutiny, which compels us to accelerate our pace, especially on the tournament related activities.
Working together with various role players, the Department of Transport has a responsibility to ensure that we improve the overall transport at system efficiency and safety by anticipating and meeting the transportation operational needs related to the tournament.
We have developed a 2010 transport master plan, which costs R80 million and its primary focus is to:
* reduce delays through traffic control
* improve road conditions and promote alternative routes
* promote and facilitate the use of public transport
* improve safety of all commuters
With regard to infrastructure development for the tournament, we have made visible and indelible advances, which included the completion of the upgrade of our infrastructure in areas such as:
* Motherwell intersection
* R72 from East London Airport to Lillyvale
* Morgan Bay Road
* Ongeluksnek Road
* Baviaans Road
* Fencing of Port St Johns airstrip
* Port Elizabeth government garage for VIP parking
* Bhisho Airport
Work is underway in projects such as:
* Motherwell to Addo Road
* R72 Fonteinskloof to Nanara
* R72 bridges
* Peddie to Bira
* Hankie to Patensie
* Port St Johns roads (airstrip, public viewing area and pedestrian paths)
* Kirkwood to Addo
* Addo to Paterson
* Witteklip to Uitenhage
* Keysers Beach
* Mthatha Airport
Our milling machine is already on site for the major repairs on the road between Coffee Bay and Mqanduli. This work is expected to commence from 1 March until 31 August 2010. The R56 million phase one of the Mthatha Airport upgrade is underway. Earlier this month, the construction of a temporary prefabricated building was completed using advanced technology adjacent to the existing terminal building of the Airport in order to allow the continuation of operations during the renovation of the permanent terminal building.
Honourable premier, this development has prompted Airlink to introduce a service on the route between Port Elizabeth and Mthatha airports. I am happy to announce that tomorrow, Friday 26 February 2010, marks the historic start of that service. A flight from Port Elizabeth departs at 13h00 and arrives in Mthatha at 14h05. From Mthatha, the flight departs at 14h45 and arrives in Port Elizabeth at 15h50. The lowest one way fare will cost approximately R707 and the highest R1 254. Fares are subject to availability at the time of making the booking.
This marks the realisation of our vision, which is clearly articulated in our Blue Skyway aviation strategy. It means that three of our airports (East London, Mthatha and Port Elizabeth) are now ready to contribute to the provincial growth and development plan and our 2010 FIFA World Cup plans. The remaining challenge is to make sure that all four airports in the province complement each other.
Our main intension is to have an airline between Cape Town and Mthatha via Bhisho. An important goal is to link Port Elizabeth to Mthatha via Bhisho with the service geared for faster movement between these three areas, especially with the tournament around the corner.
With regard to rail passenger services, Metrorail is currently implementing a coach refurbishment programme to improve its rolling stock fleet. The new and added features include vandal and fire proof seats, improved guard van doors with auto lock facilities. There is also easy access by wheel chair as grab poles have been reconfigured.
The target is to refurbish 17 coaches by the end of March 2010. Of this number, 13 have been completed and brought back to operation. 10 coaches will be destined for the Port Elizabeth area to be used during the tournament. Special train services will be made available between Uitenhage and Port Elizabeth on match days. Renovations at North End station, which is closer to the new stadium, have been completed.
Honourable minister, we believe that the success of our transportation plans cannot be realised without the involvement of the taxi industry. Public transport operators (mini bus taxi owners in the main) like other entrepreneurs in South Africa are looking forward to explore available opportunities that might arise during this period.
The national Department of Transport has published special regulations for the 2010 FIFA World Cup (from the National Land Transport Act 5 of 2009) and crafted some guidelines on the handling of public transport matters before and during the event. The bottom line however remains that public transport operations will still have to be conducted within the parameters of the law to avoid chaos and disorder. Public transport operators are advised to visit District Offices of the Department of Transport without delay for further clarities on the issuing of the special operating licences for this event.
* Operators who already hold operating licences or permits for the relevant routes or areas do not require temporary operating licences; they may operate for 2010 within the authority of their normal operating license or permit.
* Operators who hold operating licences or permits for other routes or areas will require temporary operating licences in terms of section 60 of the act and must apply following the special process provided for in the regulations. This process does not require advertising in the Government Gazette.
It only requires a vehicle inspection, not a full roadworthy test. A full test will only be required if the vehicle is suspect. The reasoning is that because the operator already holds an operating licence or permit, the vehicle will have been fully tested at least in the previous 12 months as part of the vehicle licensing process as required by the National Road Traffic Regulations.
* Operators who do not hold an operating licences or permit for the vehicle in question and who want to operate the vehicle for 2010 must apply for a full operating licence in the usual way. In terms of the act an operating licence can be issued for any period, but not longer than seven years. These OLs could thus be issued for the 2010 period, which is about two months.
The national deadline for this application process is the 28th of February 2010. Already, we have processed 24 132 operating licences throughout the province, which means we have exceeded the required number of 593. We are going to strictly monitor the operations of our public transport operators. We have appointed 23 public transport inspectors, who will be operating with our 139 member joint provincial special traffic operations task team.
We have increased the number of our traffic officers through the recruitment of additional 87 provincial traffic officers and they are now ready for traffic law enforcement, escort FIFA family, teams and sponsors to and from the airports, hotels, stadium and fan festivals. A total of 460 provincial traffic officers have gone through a traffic upliftment course to improve their skills, which will be completed in April 2010.
Traffic deployment plans have been completed, especially for the public viewing areas with the assistance of 308 volunteers, who will help in giving directions to motorists and show them the right places for parking.
New road signs have been erected on R62, R63, R102, R67, R72 and R75. In addition, temporary signs were manufactured, erected and then removed for Grahamstown and Matatiele public viewing areas during the FIFA Confederations Cup. These will be erected again at the end of May 2010.
Additional special 2010 signage will be manufactured and erected for the other public viewing areas for June 2010. This will be supplemented by billboards with road safety and crime awareness messages sponsored by INTEGCOMM.
In conclusion, I would like to reassure everybody that while challenges of budget may continue to exist, the infrastructure of our Province will be ready to receive all visitors come June this year. We are ready and looking forward to ensuring maximum safety of all soccer lovers and communities on our roads during the World Cup.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Transport, Eastern Cape Provincial Government
25 February 2010
