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Cape Town - The Department of Transport is committed to radical socio-economic transformation in the transport sector and is moving beyond words to practical programmes, Minister of Transport Joe Maswanganyi said on Monday.
"We are using our strategic levers of legislation, regulations, licensing, budget and procurement to drive transformation," he said in Daveyton, Ekurhuleni at the launch of 2017 October Transport Month.
He pointed out that the radical transformation of the transport sector is envisaged in the National Development Plan (NDP) which his department is obligated to implement.
"Equally, the obligation to address the triple challenges of inequality, poverty and unemployment cannot be postponed any further, so we need to mobilise all transport modes to turn the tide," he added.
During the 2017 October Month programme, there will be a focus, among others, on programmes and projects that create jobs through infrastructure and direct transport services the department offers. Special attention will be paid to major infrastructure projects that have direct linkages to local economic development.
"As team transport, our fundamental task is to improve access to economic opportunities, social spaces and services by bridging geographic distances affordably, reliably and safely," said Maswanganyi.
In his view, transport networks are the arteries of the economy, moving people to the workplace and goods to the marketplace.
"If the transport sector fails, the whole system collapses because goods and services cannot be moved and people cannot get to their places of work to generate economic activity that so vitally contributes to our gross domestic product (GDP)," he said.
The direct user benefits of transport include reductions in travel times and fuel consumption, increased reliability, and increased safety in the movement of people and goods.
Businesses directly benefit when goods can be shipped faster, or at lower cost. Besides the inherent value of increased mobility, individuals can benefit from increased employment options as their range of feasible commuting is expanded.
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