By Proffesor Ndawonde

Johannesburg - South Africa requires tight coordination between national, provincial and host cities to have an efficient transport system for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, says Minister of Transport Sibusiso Ndebele.

"Our plans must be tight because we know that an estimated 40 000 England fans traveled to Germany in 2006 and more than 100 000 fans were from Brazil. We expect close to 500 000 fans to descend on our shores for the World Cup in 2010.

"This figure could be more when others travel not to see the soccer, but to see the country that hosts the soccer world cup," the minister said, at the National Communication Partnership Conference in Johannesburg on Monday.

He said during the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, the department found that the park-and-ride system while useful, had its limitations and cannot be relied on during 2010.

"We will however employ a combination of the modes of transport, including rail and buses, which are principally, mass movers.

"These will be supplemented by minibus taxis, which we believe are an integral part of the public transport system," he said.

He affirmed that the national Department of Transport's roll-out plan includes long-distance services such as bus, rail and aviation.

It also includes centralised communication and information plans and signage guidelines, licensing and branding.

Minister Ndebele said after the Final Draw on 4 December 2009, the department will have an idea where the qualified countries will play and have a better sense of where the big crowds will be, according to the estimated fan base.

"This means we must be able to deal with the practical implications of having Brazil play England in Polokwane or Nelspruit.

"In such a case, our systems must be able to respond, including transport into and out of these areas, and accommodation. If we plan inadequately for this situation we might end up with a disaster," he said.

He added that for this reason, the department calls for tighter management in the form of "command and control".

"We strongly believe there must be one person who through delegated authority in the host cities runs the entire transport system.

"Similar approaches could be employed in other sectors. The buck must stop with one centre that uses a benevolent dictatorship to deal with problems," the minister said.

The conference, which was organised by Government Communication and Information System and the International Marketing Council of South Africa, opened a platform for communicators to discuss and ascertain effective communication plans for the world cup.

The conference was attended by professional communicators from the public and private sector, and among the issues discussed were transport, accommodation and mobilisation of African countries to feel part of the event.

Source: BuaNews

By Simangaliso Zwane

Cape Town - The City of Cape Town has made tremendous progress in its preparations to meet the 2010 FIFA World Cup transportation requirements and is still well within its infrastructure budget, says Minister of Transport Jeff Radebe.

The minister and various other national, local and provincial department officials including the city’s Executive Mayor Helen Zille on Thursday embarked on a 2010 transport infrastructure inspection tour.

The tour kicked off at the Green Point Stadium Visitors Centre and proceeded to the Koeberg Interchange, the N2 Rehabilitation Project, the Cape Town International Airport and ended with a drive pass Hospital Bend which is being upgraded to cope with high traffic volumes.

Mr Radebe said the city had taken on a radical approach towards meeting the transportation needs of the world cup to be staged in South Africa in less than two years time.

“We are on track, we are on time. We are also on budget and the R13.6 billion that has been put by government has been put into good use.

“I want to assure everybody in South Africa and here in Cape Town that our readiness for 2010 from the transport perspective can never be doubted,” Minister Radebe said.

Minister Radebe noted that the city had embarked on its infrastructure preparations later than other host cities because the venue was changed at the last minute.

“Initially Cape Town’s venue was going to be Athlone and at a later stage we changed that decision, but to see the tremendous progress that has been made is extremely important. This is a reflection of the kind of cooperation that we see,” he said.

He further commended city officials for steering the preparations back on track.

Ms Zille, who was recently voted the world’s best mayor by the international network of professionals City Mayors, agreed that the city had covered much ground in its preparations to welcome thousands of visitors in 2010, most of whom will be coming to experience the first ever African-flavoured world cup.

“There has been a lot of work done by many people, the great legacy of 2010 will be a transport system that our grandchildren will look back on and say someone somewhere took the right decisions and that is us right here and right now.”

The mayor thanked the minister who had envisioned the Bus Rapid Transport system becoming one of the lasting legacies of the world cup.

Mr Radebe said South Africa would reap the rewards of the current boom in transport infrastructure beyond the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and the world cup events.

“We are going to be leaving a lasting legacy for the South African economy, for its people and for the future generations.”

Mr Radebe together with Roads and Transport MEC in the Western Cape, MEC Koleka Mqulwana and SA National Roads Agency CEO, Nazir Ally is expected to launch the R300 Pedestrian Bridge in Cape Town on Friday.

The launch forms part of the department’s October Transport Month.

The two will also visit Khayelitsha for a site visit and inspection of progress regarding the Khayelitsha Rail extension project, together with SA Railway Commuter Cooperation Chief Executive Officer Tshepo Montana.

Source: BuaNews