'Soft lock' to gridlock highway commuters
Tens of thousands of Gauteng motorists wanting to use the N1 will have to sit in queues or seek alternative routes as law enforcers go all out to ensure that Africa's presidents and dignitaries from across the globe get to the World Cup final at Soccer City on time.
The closures, which Gauteng officials insist are for motorists' safety, will temporarily shut down the N1 for three hours on Sunday.
The shutdown, known as a "soft-lock", will be intermittent and will last while convoys ferrying the VIPS and dignitaries to Soccer City, pass under the various highway intersections between Pretoria and the stadium.
Law enforcers have however refused - for security reasons - to say how many convoys will travel on the N1.
They also will not say how long it will take for them to pass under an intersection nor when the final convoy will leave for the stadium.
It's also a mystery how long intersections will be closed for, how many law enforcement officials will direct potentially gridlocked traffic and how the intersections will be closed.
What is known is that people living in and around Pretoria and Joburg will have to leave for the game, which starts at 8:30pm, before 2pm, especially if they want to watch the closing ceremony which starts at 6pm.
Those wanting to watch only the game should leave after 5:30pm, when the roads are fully opened, so that the roads aren't jammed.
So far 24 current and former African heads of state and dignitaries, including the kings of Swaziland and Lesotho, are expected to attend the game.
The Pretoria News yesterday experienced a taste of Sunday's expected chaos during a two-hour road closure exercise.
The newspaper has learnt that while the highway will be shut down temporarily for dignitaries to get to the game, it will remain open when they return, and after the game.
The Gauteng Community Safety Department claims it is not necessary to shut down the highway when the dignitaries leave the stadium.
The Department's provincial control inspector, Lucky Mabasa, said: "People will not be in a hurry to leave the stadium.
"This means that the soft locks are not required and traffic will be free-flowing."
He was unable to explain why there would be a freer flow of traffic after the game considering that the number of vehicles would not be fewer.
Asked why no warning was issued about yesterday's road closures which left hundreds of motorists trapped for hours in gridlocked traffic on the R21, N4 and N1, Gauteng Transport Department spokesman, Sizwe Matshikiza said: "We cannot expect law enforcement agencies to make announcements about their operational exercises.
"A media briefing was held advising the public on all roads that are going to be closed," he said.
The media briefing was held at 11am, 30 minutes, by Matshikiza's own admission, before the exercise ended and an hour after it had begun.
Matshikiza said it was important for the public to "bear with us" as the operations were aimed at ensuring the smooth flow of traffic and safety.
It is not known who the traffic officials are hoping to keep the public safe from.
Matshikiza said the exercise and operation would be conducted by all law enforcement agencies.
"The exercise was held to ensure that on the day all loopholes are plugged and nothing goes wrong," he said.
Asked how many convoys would travel to the stadium and why the highway had to be temporarily shutdown down as opposed to several lanes, Matshikiza said: "Lots".
"It is a known fact that there will be a number of dignitaries which have to be protected, including heads of state, who we have to provide maximum protection to.
"We have an obligation to provide this protection and while we are not denying that our citizens have a right to use our roads, we are appealing to motorists to be patient."
Mabasa said the soft lock would allow motorists to travel at certain times.
"The shutdown will be from the N4/N1 interchange until Soweto's Rand Show interchange with all the highway on-ramps affected.
"These interchanges will open and close at different times intermittently depending on when the convoys pass.
"To ease traffic congestion we have made diversion routes, especially for motorists travelling along the N1 from north of Pretoria towards Joburg.
"Those who travel this route will have to travel either east or west along the N4 and then make their way onto the R21 either via Hans Strijdom Drive or through the capital," he said.
Mabasa warned that there would be "lots and lots" of convoys.
He appealed to spectators to use public transport and leave for the game early so as to ease congestion.
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