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October 2015
A
ccording to Councillor Brett
Herron, theCity’sMayoral Com-
mittee Member, Transport for
Cape Town, “When we rolled out the
first routes in the run-up to the 2010
FIFA World Cup, we never imagined
that the MyCiTi service would growat
such a pace. We are now transporting
nearly 48 000 passengers every week-
day. On average, the MyCiTi buses
cover a distance of over 1 270 000
kilometres per month and have be-
come an integral part of Cape Town.”
The City’s transport authority has
steadily rolled out routes within the
City Bowl and also to destinations
further afield, linking areas such as
Hout Bay, Imizamo Yethu, Hangberg,
Atlantis, Table View, Dunoon, Century
City, the Cape Town International Air-
port and parts of Mitchells Plain and
Khayelitshawith Cape Town’s central
business district.
The MyCiTi service consists of 31
routes, 36 stations, 500 bus stops, 466
bus drivers and more than 215 buses
operating during peak hours.
“The MyCiTi service is part of the
City’s broader strategy of investing
in infrastructure that will help drive
economic growth, development and
inclusion. Affordable, safe and ef-
ficient public transport networks are
also a critical element in breaking
down apartheid-era spatial planning,
and as such we will focus on those
communities who live far away from
job opportunities. The communities
from Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha
have welcomed the N2 Express ring
road service,” saidHerron. The uptake
of the N2 Express service is steadily
increasing, with a total number of
84 873 passenger journeys recorded
in July 2015 – an increase of nearly
4% in comparison with the previous
month.
As far as the whole service is con-
cerned, a total of 1 325 702 passenger
journeys were recorded on MyCiTi
routes in July 2015. This is an increase
of 146 385 passengers or 12,4% in
comparison with June 2015. Despite
the roll-out of new routes and the
increase in passenger numbers, the
buses along the trunk routes arrive
on time 89% of the time.
■
MyCiTi carries over 31 million passengers
Since the City of Cape Town launched the MyCiTi bus routes in
the inner-city, the service has provided transport for 31,1 million
passengers.
T
ony Clarke, Managing Director
of the Rawson Property Group,
says a great many South Afri-
cans in the lower income and middle
class categories have found them-
selves in a real financial predicament,
since the 2008/2010 downturn.
Recapping on South Africa’s eco-
nomic performance since early 2000,
Lacklustre economy
Estate agents report that the vast majority of South Africans genuinely
aspire to become home owners, in reality, less than 35% are likely to
realise their ambitions within the next 10 years.
Clarke pointed out that a US$1
equalled R6,94. Today, the exchange
rate stands at R11,90 and is likely to
go through the R12 mark. The Rand’s
status against the Euro and the £ is
equally weak.
In the same period (i.e. since 2000)
Eskom charges have risen year-on-
year from 5,5% to a peak (in 2011)
of 25,8% - and now stands close to
12%, while fuel costs in that time have
quadrupled.
In circumstances like this said
Clarke, it is not surprising that South
African household debt is still equal
to over 70% of the GDP. More than
half of South Africans applying for
mortgage bonds are automatically
disqualified, due to credit impair-
ments.
“Looking at the economy right
now, it is very difficult to predict a
significant upturn within the next
three or four years. We can only hope
that this comes about in the fairly
near rather than the distant future.”
said Clarke.
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