BRT a R15-billion flop

LazyLion

LazyLion

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Government has admitted that the R15-billion Gauteng Bus Rapid Transit system has been a mammoth flop‚ with commuters shunning the system in favour of taxis and conventional buses.

Transport minister Joe Maswanganyi‚ told delegates in his opening speech at the four-day Southern African Transport Conference in Pretoria on Monday that the buses were running empty and that government needed to rethink the system.

“We are acknowledging as the department of transport that there are challenges with BRT systems and we will review the system‚ look at it and come with the solution that will be to the best interest of commuters and government‚” he said.
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Read More...
http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/business/2017/07/10/brt-a-r15-billion-flop
 
Next up - the Gautrain a R30 Billion flop.

EDIT: Not to mention all the Joburg roads they screwed up as well....
 
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What did you expect with no proper feeder systems? That people would magically appear at a bus stop?
 
I used to work opposite a BRT station, its was always busy - people coming off buses and going on.

Surprised it isn't working out.
 
LazyLion said:
Next up - the Gautrain a R30 Billion flop.

EDIT: Not to mention all the Joburg roads they screwed up as well....
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Gautrain is a massive success.

The problem is, you try and create a market for something you can make money out of but there is no need for it. The BRT system was doomed to fail, the normal bus service is running fine, what did they expect to happen?
 
Ecco said:
I used to work opposite a BRT station, its was always busy - people coming off buses and going on.

Surprised it isn't working out.
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Same here, the Joburg-Soweto route is always full but then again, I usually notice it only during peak times.

The minister said the buses were beautiful‚ clean and fully operational in the metros but commuters were just not coming on board.
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This could be a combination of pricing and convience of using Taxi because they can stop anywhere.
 
And another example that taxpayers should use when the government wants more money from the diminishing minority of taxpayers.
 
What is the difference between a BRT bus and a conventional bus?
 
The_Librarian said:
Demarcated lanes, in theory it should speed things up during rush hour
Fancy bus stops along the route
Cleaner buses
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Yet doesn't serve even remotely where the people need it. It's mainly only in the city centre. Where the normal bus services runs all over Pretoria.
 
Pitbull said:
Yet doesn't serve even remotely where the people need it. It's mainly only in the city centre. Where the normal bus services runs all over Pretoria.
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While out in Tembisa/Chloorkop areas, I also see that they have started BRT lanes and bus stops there.

Now it would be different if the BRT was all over the place, and some funny routes (eg Mnandi/Centurion to R21 Corporate Park but that's not gonna happen...)
 
The_Librarian said:
While out in Tembisa/Chloorkop areas, I also see that they have started BRT lanes and bus stops there.

Now it would be different if the BRT was all over the place, and some funny routes (eg Mnandi/Centurion to R21 Corporate Park but that's not gonna happen...)
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Agree fully!
 
LCBXX said:
I hear mixed views on the success of the Gautrain. You don't know of any info sources that can speak to its success criteria and envisaged expansion plans?
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It's busy at peak - very, very busy. Whether or not that's by design (under-supplying carriages) or under-estimating demand is unknown to me.

Here's an article about the general economic impact - I am unable to verify the veracity (it's from a study conducted by ye old KPMG) -

http://www.iol.co.za/the-star/gautrain-on-track-to-success-1884689

Speaking on the benefits to the economy, Lullu Krugel, an economist at KPMG, said R10 billion had been invested in new developments and up-grades to retail centres within a 10km radius of stations between 2009 and last year.

This added R28m to Gauteng’s gross domestic product, representing 3 percent of the provincial GDP and showing the importance of the multiplier effect which the retail industry has on the Gauteng economy.

This, in turn, she said, had created 148 000 jobs in 2013, representing about 4 percent of the total employment in the province that year.

“What this means for Gauteng and its future is a better quality of life for residents. The train has reduced road congestion by 21 300 car trips per day, which has also resulted in fewer accidents.

The time saving for commuters, and increased productivity levels, equals between 10 and 12 working days a year,” Krugel added.

The study shows that using the Gautrain between Hatfield and Park stations and OR Tambo International Airport and Sandton stations was three times faster than using a car.

The Gautrain also offers a greener alternative to transport, reducing the carbon footprint by 52 percent per trip.

“It also brings a move towards a more reliable public transport mode. The Gautrain is producing a highly-impressive 99.67 percent service availability, consistently outperforming overseas benchmarks of about 98 to 99 percent,” she said.

On its impact on property values close to the stations, Krugel said residential properties increased by R12,9 bn, which added another R18bn to the provincial GDP.

This had created, and sustained about 98 000 jobs in Gauteng in 2013. There had also been additional investments of R9 896m in office space.

“The study shows fewer office vacancies in blocks around the stations, especially in Rosebank where the take-up of lettable office space increased dramatically.
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