Wheels turn in MyCiTi expansion plan

Cape Town - The new phase of the MyCiTi expansion will be four times the size of the pilot phase.

It is hoped that the wheels on the new bus routes will start turning in 2020, mayoral committee member for Transport for Cape Town, Brett Herron, told the Western Cape Provincial Legislature’s Standing Committee on Transport and Public Works on Tuesday.

Two trunk routes will transport commuters from Mitchells Plain to Claremont along a 25 km route and from Khayelitsha to Wynberg along a 35 km route, he explained.

The trunk routes will extend from Chris Hani railway station in Makhaza, Khayelitsha, along Govan Mbeki Road and Ottery Road to Wynberg, and from Kapteinsklip railway station in Mitchells Plain, again along Govan Mbeki Road and along Lansdowne Road to Claremont.

“There will be major roadworks all along the routes, which will be disruptive. Traffic will be diverted – permanently in some places – to accommodate the new trunk routes.

Expropriation

Some private property will unfortunately have to be expropriated, but this will be kept to a minimum," Herron warned.

“Where there are historical road schemes along the corridor, we have opted for these in order to avoid expropriation. In some cases there will be an impact – but change is inevitable if we are to make progress. We believe the end result will be worth it.”

A series of public open days will be held from May 22 until the end of June for residents living along the proposed routes.

“The development of a concept design for the Lansdowne-Wetton Corridor routes is now at an advanced stage, and is being presented to stakeholders and communities before detailed design work gets underway,” Herron said.

Since launching MyCiTi in 2010, routes have been rolled out in the West Coast, including Atlantis, Melkbosstrand, Table View and Dunoon, as well as in Century City, the Cape Town CBD and city bowl, and the Atlantic Seaboard and Hout Bay, including Hangberg and Imizamo Yethu.

The first routes for Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain were launched last year.

Two express routes to the Cape Town CBD via the N2 are already in operation, and two further routes are planned for launch soon, Herron confirmed.