Pedal power needed to help solve Sandton logjams

Frustrated by consistent traffic logjams, motorists have turned previously quiet and leafy Johannesburg/Sandton suburbs into race tracks as they peel off in search of alternative routes – invariably along residential streets that were not designed for high traffic flow.

Unless it is checked, the problem could pose a real threat to property values in prime areas such as Atholl, Inanda, Illovo, Melrose, Hyde Park and Sandhurst. These suburbs have historically been top-drawer choices for investors seeking upmarket residential peace and solitude north of the city.

They are adjacent or close to the arterial Rivonia Road link between Sandton City and Rosebank, which has become one of the Metro’s most persistently vehicle-clogged strips of roadway at peak-hours – and, often, in between.

So much so that busy commuters on that route would often do better on a bicycle!

That is why it is appropriate that one of Johannesburg City’s objectives in hosting the month-long EcoMobility World Festival in Sandton in October is to show that ecomobile (car-free) methods of transport – such as cycling – are achievable.

It is also encouraging that, according to Lisa Seftel, the executive director of Transport, Johannesburg is working towards a future where cars will account for less than 45 per cent of vehicle traffic in Sandton.

The promotion of cycling as a safe transport alternative figures prominently in that strategy.

A critical element of the process should, be the establishment, as soon as possible, of a suburban cycle lane alongside Rivonia Road between the Rosebank and Sandton CBDs. 

The terrain is flat, and there is plenty of room to create one-metre-wide dedicated cycle lanes along the spacious pavements that flank the route.

The terminals could be the new Standard Bank precinct in Rosebank and Sandton City. Furthermore, private enterprise-run bicycle depots could be located at both ends of the route – and in between – to make the facility even more user friendly.

Meanwhile, surveys reportedly show that more than 85 000 vehicles, carrying close to 150 000 people, move in and out of the Sandton precinct during peak hour traffic each day – and that 70% of the trips are undertaken in private cars.

(Other consistently gridlocked Johannesburg areas that could benefit from commuter cycle lanes include the Parktown North/Parkwood and the Houghton/Saxonwold nodes.)