Transport in Johannesburg

Last updated March 02, 2024

Johannesburg is a young and sprawling city. As the public transport system is still in its infancy, it is difficult to travel around the city. The city has grown into northern areas, but the main transport system is focused on the southern areas. These transportation systems in the south are in major peril and need of an upgrade. The city of Johannesburg invested a large percentage of its budget in this problem.

Heavy rail/Metro-rail system

Johannesburg's Metro-rail system is run by the PRASA. However, due to years of under-investment, it has fallen into disrepair, with most of the fleet being over 50 years old. Multiple concerns have been raised about its safety and PRASA, along with the government, has acknowledged these issues. There has been R172 billion (approximately $9.3 billion) put towards the modernization of the entire system including the fleet. Over the next 25 years, this plan will be implemented with 60% of the units manufactured locally. However, the routes only cover the southern area of Johannesburg.

Current fleet from the 1950s

Suburban Rail / Rapid rail

Johannesburg does not have a light rail system, but it has a rapid rail system known as the Gautrain. The Gautrain was built in 2010 to provide a reliable and efficient rail to the northern suburbs that do not have a heavy rail or a metro system, and to alleviate traffic on the N1 (Ben Schoeman Highway) between Johannesburg and Pretoria. The N1 Ben Schoeman highway is said^{[ by whom? ]} to be the busiest highway in the Southern Hemisphere.^{[ citation needed ]} Completed in 2012, the Gautrain has grown to become a huge success, transporting so many people a day, that it had to expand its fleet to keep the wait times manageable. Some believe that the R24 billion (the equivalent of $1.7 billion) could have been spent on other more essential projects, such as housing, water, etc. A 149 km-long expansion project is currently underway, including 19 stations on 3 new lines. However, the extension project is currently on hold due to the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic and various lockdowns have had on passenger demand for the Gautrain and is only likely to commence in 2024.^[1] The Gautrain works on a smartcard system, where the passenger taps in at the starting station and taps out at the station of their destination. The system also runs a feeder bus system that uses the same smartcard system as the trains with your average trip costing about $0.65. However, the routes only cover a 5–8 km radius neglecting many areas, most notably the areas around Rosebank.

Gautrain Routes (as of 13 March 2016)

North-south line

Hatfield ------ Pretoria --------- Centurion ------------- Midrand ---------- Sandton --------- Marlboro --------- Rosebank ------- Johannesburg Park Station

East-west line

Sandton --------- Marlboro --------- Rhodesfield -------- O. R. Tambo International Airport

Buses

Metrobus

Metrobus is Johannesburg's primary and largest bus service operating an extensive number of routes covering most of the Metropolitan Municipality with many focusing on schools.

Fee/payment system, Metrobus

The fees are determined according to a zonal system with the fee increasing with every zone crossed. and are ranged from R7/$0.5 a maximum of R40/$3.5 (e.g. park station to Midrand, 8 zones crossed, a total of 30 km) Fees are paid with cash/hard money or a pre-loaded card (cheaper than cash) similar to a subway system, with discounts to scholars and pensioners.

Fleet condition, Metrobus

The fleet is in a generally good condition with new buses that have been purchased and are steadily phasing out the old ones. A new eco-friendly fleet has recently been purchased, with some of the features including tinted windows that are said to save fuel on air conditioning and eco-friendly fuel, along with comfortable plush seats. A fleet which was purchased even more recently is co-branded with the Rea Vaya showing the city's efforts to integrate public transport.

Bus Rapid Transit/Rea Vaya

Johannesburg is known in South Africa and Africa for having bumper-to-bumper traffic. Taking this into consideration, the city designed an affordable way to build an efficient system in 2010 to get people that are far away to the city center. This was done to avoid the notorious taxi industry, and the best option was a BRTS, the first in Africa, named the Rea Vaya which means "we are going". The project aims to make the entire city accessible to at least 80% of residents. At the time of writing the system is safe, cheap, and effective. The trunk and complementary routes run on their own lanes avoiding the infamous Joburg traffic jams and the feeder routes run on roads like normal buses.

Fee/payment system, Rea Vaya

The system works on a smartcard system with the passenger "taping in" (touching the smartcard onto the reader at the station or bus, depending on the route, Feeder routes have no stations. Instead they have buses and trunk and complementary routes have large stations) and taping out at the destination station/bus stop. The fee is determined according to distance traveled, approximately R5/$0.4 per kilometer. This is a cheap and affordable option competing with the minibus taxi industry.

Safety and effectiveness

The system is safe and clean, with CCTV cameras at all stations along with security guards, this not only keeps the stations and system safe but also the area around it. The system provides a safe and efficient transport option to those who do not want to use minibus taxis. The system also integrates the minibus taxi industry with many stations being nearby taxi ranks declared by the city of Johannesburg (where all the minibus taxis collect and where routes start).

Routes (as of March 2018)

Trunk Route

Runs from Soweto to central Johannesburg, an enormous distance.^{[ citation needed ]} By the end of 2017, the route will run to Sandton and Rosebank in the north and by 2022 it will run to Midrand as well a huge distance of 150 km. The route to Sandton is largely complete, though is not yet operational.^{[ needs update ]}^{[ citation needed ]}

Related Research Articles

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Johannesburg is the most populous city in South Africa with 4,803,262 people, and is classified as a megacity; it is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. It is the provincial capital and largest city of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. Johannesburg is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the highest court in South Africa. Most of the major South African companies and banks have their head offices in Johannesburg. The city is located within the mineral-rich Witwatersrand hills, the epicentre of the international-scale mineral, gold and (specifically) diamond trade.

Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandton</span> Area in Gauteng province, South Africa

Sandton is a financial, commercial and residential area, located in the northern part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. Formerly an independent municipality, Sandton's name came from the combination of two of its suburbs, Sandown and Bryanston.

Midrand is a former municipality in central Gauteng, South Africa. Situated in-between Centurion and Sandton, Midrand now forms part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality.

Johannesburg is heavily dependent upon freeways for transport around the city due to its location 1,500 metres above sea level, far from the coast or any major bodies of water. There are 10 freeways in the Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area: the N1, N3, N12, N14, N17, R21, R24, R59, M1 and M2. In addition, three new freeways are planned: the G5, G9 and G14. Freeways are sometimes called highways or motorways colloquially.

Kempton Park is a city in the East Rand region of Gauteng province, South Africa. It is part of the City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality. It is situated south of Thembisa, one of the largest townships in South Africa, which is also part of Ekurhuleni. South Africa's busiest airport, O. R. Tambo International Airport is located in Kempton Park.

Gautrain is an 80-kilometre (50-mile) higher-speed express commuter rail system in Gauteng, South Africa, which links Johannesburg, Pretoria, Kempton Park and O. R. Tambo International Airport. It takes 15 minutes to travel from Sandton to O. R. Tambo International Airport on the Gautrain and 35 minutes from Pretoria in Tshwane to Park Station in Johannesburg. The Gautrain has 10 stations. Buses, shuttles and midibus services are available to transport passengers to and from all stations excluding the O. R. Tambo International Airport Station.

Houghton Estate, often simply called Houghton, is an affluent suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, north-east of the city centre.

The Bombardier Electrostar is a family of electric multiple-unit (EMU) passenger trains manufactured by Bombardier Transportation at their Derby Litchurch Lane Works in England between 1999 and 2017. It has become the most common new EMU type in the United Kingdom since the privatisation of British Rail with a number of variants. Electrostar trains are most common on high-volume suburban commuter routes around London; and on mainline services from London south to Surrey and the south coast, east to Essex, and north to Cambridge and Stansted Airport.

Sandton is a metro station on the Gautrain rapid transit system in Sandton, Gauteng. It opened to traffic on 8 June 2010 with service to OR Tambo International Airport.

MyCiti is a bus rapid transit service with feeders, which forms part of a greater Integrated Public Transport driven economic development strategy of the City of Cape Town Municipality (CoCT) in South Africa. The service is being rolled out across the Cape Metropole, and provides a significantly enhanced public transport system in about 10% of the City. The service commenced in 2010 with Phase 1, which features buses running north to south along the west coastline of the City.

Rhodesfield is a metro station on the Gautrain rapid transit and Metrorail systems in Rhodesfield, Kempton Park, Gauteng, to the east of Johannesburg. It opened on 8 June 2010 with service to Sandton.

Rosebank is a metro station on the Gautrain rapid transit system in Rosebank, Johannesburg, Gauteng. It opened for passenger services on 2 August 2011 as part of the second phase of the Gautrain project.

Midrand is a metro station on the Gautrain rapid transit system in Midrand, Gauteng. It opened on 2 August 2011 as part of the second phase of the Gautrain project.

Metrorail Gauteng is a network of commuter rail services in Gauteng province in South Africa, serving the Johannesburg and Pretoria metro areas. It is operated by Metrorail, a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA).

Rea Vaya is a bus rapid transit system operating in Johannesburg, South Africa. It opened in phases starting on 30 August 2009. Rea Vaya links the Johannesburg CBD and Braamfontein with Soweto. It is currently expanding towards Sandton, Rosebank and Midrand as well. It is one of the first bus rapid transit systems in Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centurion (Gautrain station)</span>

Centurion is a metro station on the Gautrain rapid transit system in Centurion, Gauteng. The station opened on 2 August 2011 as part of the second phase of the Gautrain project.

Hatfield is a metrorail station on the Gautrain rapid transit system in the suburb of Hatfield in Pretoria, Gauteng. It was opened on 2 August 2011 as part of the second phase of the Gautrain project.

Rhodesfield is a suburb central to Kempton Park, in Gauteng province, South Africa, just south of the CBD. It houses the last station on the Gautrain route to OR Tambo International Airport from Sandton. The station is at the corner of Anson and Valencia Streets, north of the nearby R24 highway.

References

↑ "Gautrain puts expansion plans on hold". BusinessTech. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-04.

External Links

https://manometcurrent.com/south-africa-freight-and-logistics-market-to-witness-the-highest-growth-globally-in-coming-years-2021-2025/