| WC airport threatens bird population - 16/11/2006 |
The bird that heralds the start of the British spring is being put at risk by a new airport planned for the 2010 World Cup, wildlife campaigners warned. The Guardian Unlimited reports that they are concerned about a move by the SA Government to transform a runway for light aircraft into an international airport ahead of the World Cup. The site, Mount Moreland reedbed near Durban, lures more than three million swallows to roost every night. The reedbed lies on the flight path of aircraft that will arrive and depart from the proposed La Mercy airport and BirdLife SA fears the reedbed will be cleared because the birds could threaten aircraft safety.
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Full Guardian Unlimited report
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| N4 could be re-routed - 15/11/2006 |
The entire N4 toll-road system is under review - and the Nelspruit bypass may be here sooner than expected. Changes to the road could involve moving and installing new toll plazas and introducing new charges. The Lowvelder reports that Arthur Coy, CE Trans African Concessions which operates the route from Pretoria to Maputo said a specialist transport planning consultancy is currently considering options to bring forward the plan to reroute the N4 around the northern outskirts of the provincial capital. ’Not only is the traffic congestion increa-sing in Nelspruit, but also the transport arrangements for access to the World Cup 2010 stadium have to be ready in good time,’ he said.
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Full report in The Lowvelder Online
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| SA short of engineers - 15/11/2006 |
The project director for SA’s most ambitious railway project has admitted that the country was short of about 200 engineers. Business in Africa Online reports that Charles-Etienne Perrier said these engineers were needed to build railway stations and 203 bridges as part of the Gautrain project. Part of the problem, according to project leader Jack van der Merwe, was that many of SA’s engineers were working outside the country in places like Dubai and Taiwan. The Gautrain project wasn’t the only major construction project that was making it tricky to source engineers. SA would be hosting the World Cup in 2010, which would require the building of several stadia amongst other projects.
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Full Business in Africa Online report
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| Transport plans must be put into action - 15/11/2006 |
The time has come to call a halt to academic transport planning exercises and get on with the job now that funds are made available, said the Cape Town Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Die Burger reports that Janine Myburgh, president of the Chamber, says the city council has been hatching transport plans since 1990 and especially during the time it was bidding for the Olympic Games but very little has happened. ’The reason has always been that there were no funds available but that has fallen by the way with the promise of money to prepare the city to host a 2010 World Cup semi-final.’
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Full report in Die Burger
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| Unfinished freeway needs financial backing - 13/11/2006 |
Cape Town’s famous unfinished Eastern Boulevard freeway is set to continue its iconic status - at least until after the 2010 World Cup. The Cape Argus reports that unfinished since the 1970s, the freeway is set to still be around to greet thousands of football fans when the World Cup rolls into town, unless a financial backer intervenes. City transport director Maddie Mazaza said: ’The completion of the project is not going to be done in the short-term. It will not be done before 2010.’
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Full Cape Argus report
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| Acsa to issue R2bn bond to fund expansion - 13/11/2006 |
Airports Company SA (Acsa) will issue its first bond to raise an initial R2bn for capital expenditure on airport expansion by March next year. According to Business Report, financial director Brooks Mparutsa said: ’This will be the first of several issues. Of the R5.2bn Acsa will spend on upgrading airports, about 60% will be funded through bond issues. ’ Ahead of the bond issue, Acsa is working to secure a credit rating and has appointed Merrill Lynch as advisers on this score. Acsa ’s capital investment programme, which is primarily targeted at its three international airports in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, has already begun.
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Full story in Business Report
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| Bombela could face huge fines - 10/112006 |
Gautrain winning consortium Bombela will pay a fine of R150m plus inflation if it does not have the first phase of the project completed in time for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Completion of the first leg of the 80km rapid rail line, between OR Tambo airport, Sandton and Midrand, was a condition in the bid agreement for the World Cup. Business Day reports that transport plans for the 2010 event are already being drawn up, with the Gautrain forming part of an important link between the city and the airport.
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Full Business Day report
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| Concern over SA’s hasty airport construction - 09/11/2006 |
If you ask an airport operator in Europe, North America or Japan, most will tell you 10 to 20 years. But if you ask the airport operator in SA, it claims only three years. And it is serious. In a BizzBuzzMedia.com column, Brendan Sobie writes that ’SA does not plan to even select a consortium to design and build the new Durban International Airport until early next year. But the Airports Company of SA (ACSA) is committed to opening the airport prior to the 2010 World Cup, which will be staged in SA. Funding for the project however, which will cost an estimated 3 to 4 billion rand, has not yet been committed. Environmental approval also has not yet been secured. Both of these obstacles, which in other countries can hold up new airport construction for several years, are expected to be cleared by year-end.’
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Read the full BizzBuzzMedia.com column
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| Niche vehicles in the pipeline at Mercedes - 09/11/2006 |
Operators that are gearing towards greater diversity in their fleets and are looking at the opportunities presented by the 2010 Soccer World Cup and other big construction projects such as the Gautrain, airports and sports stadiums, should take a look at niche vehicles in the pipeline at Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicles. Business Day reports that at Auto Africa practical new additions to some of the Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle ranges have widened the choices for operators looking for specific vehicles to complete specific tasks. Among others the world’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer is showcasing the all new Sprinter due for local release in March next year with a number of vehicle variants that are bound to extend the vans’ appeal to a wider market. Extensive standard specifications are provided, while some individualised options fulfil operator needs.
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Full Business Day report
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| Gautrain road closures expected to last ’up to three years’ - 09/11/2006 |
Rosebank will feel the full impact of construction on the Gautrain station precinct along Oxford Road by the start of December, when road closures and route diversions will be enforced. Construction of the Rosebank station precinct is expected to have a huge impact on the area, with road closures and diversions in the area expected to last for up to three years. ’The project is only 40 days old, but there is already a lot of activity taking place throughout the city,’ said Denis Bouvet, CE of the Bombela Concession Company.
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Full Johannesburg.gov press release
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| SA on track to meet safety requirements - Radebe - 07/11/2006 |
Transport Minister Jeff Radebe says SA is on track to meet the airport and air safety requirements necessary for the massive influx of foreign visitors during the 2010 World Cup. The Cape Times reports that Radebe who was peaking at the Airports Council International World Annual Assembly being held in Cape Town, said a number of initiatives were already under way. ’SA is already making huge investments on airport developments to address the high growth rate in air transportation and the added demands of accelerating infrastructure development plans to cater to the forecast traffic peak presented by the Fifa World Cup in 2010,’ he said.
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Full Cape Times report
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| New R664m terminal for CTI - 07/11/2006 |
Work has started on a R664m contract for a new Integrated Terminal at Cape Town International Airport, scheduled for completion in December 2009. According to a report in the News24 site, a challenge for the contractors will be phasing the work in order to provide for the continual operation of the airport. Public safety will also be a priority. Once the new terminal is commissioned and the existing departure terminal is fully relocated, the old terminal will be demolished. Once completed, passengers will be able to use an additional eight new passenger loading bridges that will be connected to the new terminals.
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Full report on the News24 site
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| Private plane sales soar - 07/11/2006 |
Alexander Forbes estimates a 30% increase in private plane sales over the last three years, following exponential growth during that period. This trend is neatly paralleled by an increase in the number of aircraft registered and pilot licences issued. FA News reports that Gavin Naude of Alexander Forbes Risk Services Aviation division believes this reflects increased confidence in South African economic performance and the advent of the World Cup in 2010 is also bound to track this growth pattern with the desire by wealthier spectators to be flown to tourist destinations around the region.
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Full FA News report
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| Fuel industry concentrates on keeping festive supplies up - 07/11/2006 |
While hard-pressed, the SA fuel industry would leave no stone unturned to keep the market supplied over the festive season, Colin McClelland, the director of the SA Petroleum Industry Association, said. According to Business Report, McClelland said that during the third quarter, SA imported more than 1m tons of petrol, diesel and jet fuel from the Middle East and the Far East. There would have been greater problems had the industry not stocked up. Demand had outstripped the ability of the only pipeline to supply Gauteng with fuel, he said. This would remain a problem until the 2010 soccer World Cup.
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Full story in Business Report
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| New buses for 2010 - 06/11/2006 |
Johannesburg’s Metropolitan Bus Services has started replacing its ageing bus line-up with an order of 126 Mercedes-Benz buses in a bid to have a ’younger fleet’ in time for the 2010 World Cup. Sunday World reports that the big order has meant creation of new jobs as the company has had to build a dedicated bus assembly line at Ikhwezi Trucktec in East London. Using a combination of imported bus chassis and knocked-down kits from Brazil, the Ikhwezi plant will assemble the buses, fitting local parts such as tyres, rims and bus bodies. Mercedes-Benz’ s Harry Teifel says the refleeting is part of local government’s drive towards 2010.
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Full Sunday World report
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| Rickshaws to transport visitors during 2010 - 05/11/2006 |
Cape Town is to get colourful, locally designed rickshaws that will operate between the 2010 soccer stadium in Green Point, the Waterfront and Cape Town Station. The Cape Argus report that the rickshaws will add yet another drawcard to Cape Town’s growing number of tourist attractions. Rickshaws will also provide an alternative means of transport for visitors during the 2010 Soccer World Cup, and create jobs. There are also plans to accommodate more pedestrian walk-ways and bicycle routes in the CBD.
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Full Cape Argus report
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| Oudsthoorn moves to lure 2010 traffic - 03/11/2006 |
The Oudtshoorn municipality is planning an upgrade of the town’s airport that will enable it to carry more cargo on a daily basis and make it an alternative passenger airport. The Herald reports that Municipal local economic development manager Greg Baartman said the upgrade was also being done with an eye on the Fifa 2010 World Cup. ’The World Cup is being held in winter and often in winter there are diversions to Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. If we want to have base camps in the Eden district we need an alternative airport where people can touch down and can be transferred to where they need to be within 10 minutes.’ The closing date for tenders is November 17.
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Full report in The Herald
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| SA’s deadly roads pass its ’sell-by’ date - 01/11/2006 |
SA’s ageing road infrastructure has reached its ’sell-by’ date with daily reports of giant potholes, cracks and dangerously uneven surfaces on major arterial roads. The Mercury reports that the deteriorating condition of roads could have a negative impact on road accident figures, particularly over the festive season. This is according to Dr Chris Hlabisa, the Chief Director of Implementation in the KZN Transport Department. Transport MEC Bheki Cele said his department’s preparations for the soccer 2010 World Cup were on track. He said his department would be working with all stakeholders to ensure that KZN had a safe, reliable, affordable and efficient public transport system by 2010.
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Full report in The Mercury
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| A380 on track for 2010 - 01/11/2006 |
The giant Airbus A380 will not be in service until October next year, but five of the planes are successfully completing proving trials in different parts of the world and SA will be visited by one for the first time this month. According to Business Report, it will carry out important auto-landing trials at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on November 26, giving local aviation enthusiasts an opportunity to see it in the skies over the city. Both OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airport are already capable of handling the giant plane, which is expected to be used by several airlines to bring spectators to the 2010 World Cup.
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Full story in Business Report
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| More upgrades on the cards for OR Tambo - 29/10/2006 |
The OR Tambo International Airport is undergoing a massive R3.5bn upgrade. The construction includes an additional 8000 vehicle parking bays, another terminal building and an international passenger holding facility. This Airports Company of South Africa (Acsa) opened 1100 new parking bays and is set to open 6900 more bays in addition to the 10000 existing ones. Acsa spokesman Solomon Makgale said passenger numbers at SA’s airports were expected to increase from 16m this year to 25m by 2010. The national government allocated R5.2bn to upgrade airports across the country ahead of the 2010 soccer World Cup and the lion’s share of that went to OR Tambo, SA’s biggest airport, previously known as Johannesburg International.
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Full Sunday Times report
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| Major plans for city transport - 25/10/2006 |
The City of Cape Town and the provincial government have joined forces to ask national government for an extra R1bn for an extensive public transport plan involving substantial improvements to rail, bus, taxi and non-motorised transport by 2010. The Cape Times reports that the two spheres of government meet tomorrow to discuss the structure of the long-awaited Transport Authority. ’The battle lines have been drawn to deal with (the city’s) transport challenges,’ Transport and Public Works MEC Marius Fransman said. ’By the middle of next year, everything would pull together’ so the city could accommodate the more than 400 000 visitors expected during the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
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Full Cape Times report
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| Overhaul for city’s bus fleet ahead of 2010 - 24/10/2006 |
A consignment of 126 buses and two coaches officially handed over by DaimlerChrysler to the Johannesburg Metro, on Tuesday, is the first part in a series of new bus consignments, expected to total some 300, aimed at improving public transport ahead of the 2010 soccer World Cup. Engineering News reports that the Johannesburg Metro, which is refleeting and modernising its aging bus sector selected Mercedes-Benz as the preferred supplier and aimed to capitalise between R30m and R40m in fuel savings with the newer and more economical fleet. ’Of course, there is an increased demand in the run-up to the 2010 soccer World Cup for different types of people transport requirements, that is, commuter, city buses or coaches,’ said DaimerChrysler vice president Wolfgang Diez.
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Full Engineering News report
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| Minister warns taxi operators against strike - 24/10/2006 |
SA Transport Minister Jeff Radebe has warned taxi operators who plan to go on strike against the recapitalisation programme to do so within the law. The Dispatch reports that. ’Our view as government is that ... it must be done within the prescript of the law, ’ the minister said. Radebe, in his opening remarks at the meeting, said the SA Government has set aside R3.8bn for public transport for the 2010 soccer World Cup. He said the World Cup Public Transport and Systems Fund had already allocated the first round of funding to city councils hosting the 2010 soccer matches.
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Full Dispatch report
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| Minister hails transport meeting a success - 23/10/2006 |
A two-day transport meeting held in Soweto ended on Monday, with Minister of Transport Jeff Radebe hailing it as a success. According to a Mail & Guardian Online report, during the meeting, delegates broke into three commissions that focused on the public transport strategy, the 2010 transport plan and the national road safety strategy. Delegates at the conference also endorsed three strategies focusing on improving road safety, reducing road deaths and improving roads for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
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Full Mail & Guardian Online report
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| Bhisho to be turned into international airport - 23/10/2006 |
The Eastern Cape transport Department has welcomed a national transport department report which says Bhisho could be turned into an international airport for the 2010 World Cup. The Herald reports that the turnaround plan for the Bhisho Airport is part of a R3.7-bn transport department strategy to boost SA’s public transport system for the 2010 Cup. The money will be spent on road construction around the country and improving the rail system. It will also make provision for airports such as those at Upington, Mafikeng and Bhisho to be used as entry points for scheduled international flights.
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Full report in The Herald
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| SA airports on track - 23/10/2006 |
SA’s major airports will have to double in capacity every nine years to handle the increasing demand from airlines, passengers and support services. That’s according to the Airports Company of SA (Acsa), who said that, while the number of international passengers has grown substantially, domestic air travel has seen large increases as well. The Cape Times reports that Acsa has expansion plans in place through 2035 for its airports and much of the construction currently taking place was planned before SA won the bid to host the 2010 World Cup.
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Full Cape Times report
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| Major plan to improve transport by 2010 - 22/10/2006 |
SA will spend billions on a battle plan to bolster the country’s transport system for the 2010 World Cup. Cabinet has approved an action plan to prioritise 2010 transport demands in a bid to accommodate the 400 000 foreign visitors expected in the country for the six-week tournament. According to a Transport Department report, the plan “will be unlike anything ever experienced in South Africa before and will require planning and co-ordination beyond any transport management the country has ever faced”. The Sunday Times reports that by the end of this year the department also wants to have in place a 2010 transport-planning framework, stadium-access reports and transport requirements for the expected Fifa officials, players and VIPs.
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Full Sunday Times report
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| Rail extension a boost for Cape township - 19/10/2006 |
The 4.5 km Khayelitsha rail extension which is estimated to cost well over R300m, is expected to be completed in the last quarter of 2007. This was announced by the Minister of Transport, Jeff Radebe on a site visit in Khayelitsha last week. City Vision reports that the construction is now in its fourth month. It is expected that the extension will increase commuter figures by more than 40 600 in the next decade and beyond. It is going to give services of four road over rail bridges, four fully accessible stations, two fully accessible transport interchanges, three newly refurbished train-sets, and the acquisition of 4,5 km of double electrified and signalled rail line. There will also be alterations to existing road infrastructure and road network upgrading.
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Full City Vision report
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| New bus system to benefit WC - 17/10/2006 |
Johannesburg could soon get a new transport system that could revolutionise travel in the city and ease congestion. Business Day reports that the city council last month approved a proposal to conduct feasibility studies into a super-quick bus network that works like a rail system with dedicated transport lanes, rapid boarding and alighting, enclosed stations and pre-boarding fare collection, but at half the cost. Bob Stanway, director of transportation planning and management for the city, said that a rapid bus transport system would be beneficial for both the 2010 World Cup and the long-term transformation of the city.
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Full Business Day report
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| Chaos in 2010 transport fund distribution - 16/10/2006 |
Several major municipalities that will be important centres during the 2010 soccer World Cup have not signed agreements so far with the transport department to spend the money available to them for developing a public transport system to accommodate the tournament fans. According to Business Report, MPs heard that Ekurhuleni metro should have been allocated R27.7m, but no money had been transferred because a memorandum of understanding had still not been completed, 18 months after the public transport and systems fund was created. Nothing has been transferred to the Sol Plaatje local authority for the same reason and nothing has gone to Potchefstroom or the city of Matlosana (Klerksdorp). Other challenges holding up the development of public transport infrastructure included a cumbersome procurement process and increasing demand in the civil and construction industries.
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Full story in Business Report
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