An eTHEKWINI Municipality bus project that was supposed to have taken off in 2017 and has already had billions of rand injected into it over the years, could possibly start rolling in about a year’s time.
That was the prediction made by the city’s Mayor Cyril Xaba about the GO! Durban project that is expected to be in keeping with global public transport trends, and entail a roll out of electric or e-buses.
In other parts of the world, cities have embraced this form of transport, helping to reduce emissions in Germany and Spain.
New Delhi in India currently has the highest number of e-buses in operation.
Speaking at the recent C40 Cities, Mayor Cyril Xaba said the City was already making headway and has kicked off a feasibility study for the deployment of the buses.
"Within the next 10-12 months, the city will have three e-buses for trial purposes and an additional 16 in the next three years," Xaba said.
The mayor explained that the roll out of the e-buses was a bold intervention to achieve climate resilience and carbon neutrality in the city's public transportation system.
He said the municipality was also working on the implementation and expansion of the public transport network (IPTN) and the implementation of travel demand measures to reduce private car trips by 50% by 2050.
However, it remains to be seen if the City's robust plan will see the light of day owing to the non- start of the Go!Durban project.
The project was due to kick off in 2017 and there also was hype that the project was due to "go live" in October last year.
The project was initially expected to provide an efficient, integrated public transport system for Durban, but the delays and lack of progress have led to public frustration, according to the Democratic Alliance.
The DA has called for a comprehensive report on the project that has reportedly cost the taxpayer in excess of R8 billion.
"While these operational costs continue to mount, the Go Durban Project has failed to meet its fundamental milestones.
“Notably, the acquisition of buses, a critical component for the service’s launch, has yet to be completed," said the DA's Zamani Khuzwayo.
The project is know to have been hit by several delays including disputes within the taxi industry and vandalism at stations.
ActionSA has further accused the city of wasteful expenditure over the project, their provincial chairperson, Zwakele Mncwango, said the city was spending money "guarding white elephant structures".
While the Mayor expects the city will have three e-buses within the next year, the municipality’s spokesperson, Gugu Sisilana said they were yet to undertake any feasibility study.
Commenting on how much the buses will cost as well as the matter of charging stations, she said; "The feasibility study will assess the requirements for charging and other infrastructure that will be required.
“The feasibility study is similar to a business case and will assess everything required before any public funds are committed to procuring the buses.
Sisilana said that e-buses will not be rolled out until there was a valid business case that supported the project and was approved by council.
When asked if it will be another Go!Durban debacle, she said the City will provide an update on the progress and status of the programme within the next two months, along with the way forward, ensuring no implications for key stakeholders.
"At this stage, we will not comment on the Go! Durban programme out of respect for ongoing consultations.“ Sisilana said the City was currently finalising a Memorandum of Agreement with the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI), who were the implementing agents for the Electric Bus project. Once that has been signed, the feasibility study will be initiated.
DAILY NEWS