Century City Public Transport Services & Facilities
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CENTURY CITY PROPERTY OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION (CCPOA) AND RABIE PROPERTY GROUP (RPG) CENTURY CITY PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES & FACILITIES (EXISTING & FUTURE) 2008 OVERVIEW REPORT HHO Africa Infrastructure Engineers 6560 Cape Town October 2008 CONTENTS Section No Description Page No EXECUTIVE SUMMARY i 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND 1 1.2 SCOPE OF THIS REPORT 1 2.0 EXISTING SYSTEM EVALUATION 2.1 EXISTING PUBLIC TRANSPORT & RELATED 2 INFRASTRUCTURE 2.2 EXISTING PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES & DEMAND 3 3.0 FUTURE PUBLIC TRANSPORT PROPOSALS 3.1 FUTURE PUBLIC TRANSPORT & RELATED 9 INFRASTRUCTURE 3.2 FUTURE PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES 12 3.3 FUTURE PUBLIC TRANSPORT DEMAND 13 4.0 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS & CONCLUSIONS 1 6 5.0 REFERENCES 1 8 Century City Public Transport Services Assessment (2008) HHO Africa Century City Property Owners’ Association & Rabie Property Group October 2008 i CENTURY CITY : PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES & FACILITIES (EXISTING & FUTURE) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Century City is well served by external public transport services, mainly buses and minibus-taxis, and to a lesser extent, rail. The Ratanga Public Transport Interchange is located adjacent to Ratanga Road in the western part of Century City while the new Century Avenue Public Transport Interchange is located in the northern part of Century City and will replace the current transfer facility located at the nearby Shell Service Station. The construction of the Century Avenue PTI is virtually complete, and it is soon to be opened for services. The major points of origin for taxi and especially bus services are Mitchell’s Plain and Khayelitsha. Other points of origin for buses are Cape Town, Elsies River, Hanover Park, Delft and Nyanga and Atlantis; and for taxis are Maitland and Koeberg rail stations, and Goodwood, Elsies River, Bellville, Nyanga, Gugulethu and Langa. Public Transport Services & Facilities at Century City : Executive Summary ii The internal shuttle service operating between Ratanga PTI and the Shell service station is well established, and has become a popular mode of workers accessing their places of work via the transport interchanges Whereas the shuttle service follows a linear route Current initiatives regarding the shuttle service between Ratanga and the Shell service station via includes the possible introduction of new buses, in Century Boulevard and Century Avenue, future line with the airport shuttles currently in use. An route options could include a circular route via the alternative option being considered is the recently completed sections of Century Boulevard refurbishment of existing buses, which includes and Century Way ring road. creating more standing room. The shuttle service performance levels are generally high, with headways between 7 and 10 minutes during peak hours, and on average 15 minutes during the inter- and off-peak periods. The service is well utilised, and carried around 3 000 passengers/day, or ± 90 000 per month. Ridership growth since 2005 was substantial, when it carried around 2 000 passengers/day (or ± 60 000 per month). Public Transport Services & Facilities at Century City : Executive Summary iii There is a direct pedestrian link along Northbank Lane between Ratanga PTI and Canal Walk Shopping Centre (and other facilities within Century City). The at grade crossing of Century Way is particularly busy and wide sidewalks are provided along Northbank Lane to separate pedestrians from normal traffic. There is currently demand for metered taxis generated by the existing hotels and timeshare facilities within Century City. These activities are likely to increase as more of these types of facilities are introduced into Century City. The detail planning for Century City station on the Monte Vista rail line is underway, and construction is earmarked for completion before the 2010 World Cup. It forms a key part of the transport operational plan for the event (as a park-and-ride and transfer station). A formal pedestrian link is planned to connect Century City station and Century City via Sable Road bridge. A dedicated bus rapid transit (BRT) facility is planned along the N1 corridor, linking the Northern Suburbs with Cape Town. In the shorter Summer Greens station is indicated term, dedicated trunk BRT routes linking Century City with Cape Town as the first station on the Atlantis CBD (via Koeberg Road & R27), the Airport and Bloubergstrand are line, and will become operational planned. with the upgrading of the Atlantis line to provide a passenger service The City of Cape Town has allocated R1,3bn to the 1st phase of the BRT in the longer term. system, part of which is scheduled for completion by March 2010. Public Transport Services & Facilities at Century City : Executive Summary iv Currently ± 22% of trips to and from Century City are public transport trips (18% bus & taxi, 4% rail). This compares favourably with competing areas such as Tygervalley where 18% of trips are by public transport (bus & taxi). By comparison, a node such as Claremont which is served directly by rail (southern suburbs line) has a similar proportion by bus & taxi (19%), but a much larger proportion by rail (17%) compared to Century City, which currently is only served indirectly (Acacia Station & Mutual Stations) and have excessive and indirect pedestrian linkages. When Century City station is introduced, it would be expected that a much larger proportion by rail would be realised. Claremont Century City Tygervalley Claremont 0% 17% 4% 18% 18% 19% 78% 82% 64% Car commuter trips Bus & Taxi commuter trips Rail commuter trips In terms of the land use bulk allocation at Century City, ± 58% of the total future allowable retail and office bulk is still available for use, including approved but yet unutilised bulk. This provides an indication of the potential for growth in public transport demand, and services provision. Based on a targeted public transport mode share at Century City of 50% (currently 22%), public transport demand at a fully developed Century City could potentially show a sixfold increase, and a close to a sevenfold increase if potential public transport use by local residents is also considered. The planning and provision for public transport at Century City is well positioned to accommodate the anticipated increases in demand. Public Transport Services & Facilities at Century City : Executive Summary 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND The Century City Property Owners’ Association (CCPOA) and Rabie Property Group (RPG) have requested HHO Africa to prepare an independent overview report on the provision of public transport services at Century City. Together with the growth of Century City over the past 10 years, an associated increase in the demand for public transport services has been experienced. Century City has become a major destination point for bus and taxi services, from origins as far as Mitchell’s Plain and Khayelitsha. Rail plays a relatively minor role at this stage, with passengers accessing Century City via the Acacia Park station on the Monte Vista rail line, and also Mutual Station via the Kensington residential area. The internal Century City shuttle service, which was introduced in October 1997, provides all-day services during weekdays and weekends. It operates between the Ratanga Public Transport Interchange in the south-west, and the Shell service station in the north, via Century Boulevard and Century Avenue. The Century Avenue transport interchange has recently been completed, and is expected to become operational in the near future (as the new interchange replacing the Shell service station). Future external public transport infrastructure and service improvements include the construction and implementation of Century City station on the Monte Vista rail line (to be operational for the 2010 World Cup), and Summer Greens station on the Atlantis rail line in the longer term. A dedicated bus rapid transit (BRT) facility is planned along the N1, linking the Northern Suburbs with Cape Town, which could introduce an attractive alternative to private vehicle travelling along this corridor. Finally, demand responsive road based services should ensure that Century City continues to be well served by buses and minibus-taxis, as new developments at Century City are rolled out. 1.2 SCOPE OF THIS REPORT This report provides a status quo of existing external and internal public transport services provision at Century City. It covers aspects related to infrastructure, frequency of services, major origins and destinations, and demand. It also provides a forecast of potential public transport demand at the development, based on the bulk parameters agreed with the City of Cape Town. Recent data from surveys of shuttle and external public transport services undertaken by the Century City Property Owners’ Association, have been used in the report. The report is also an update of the investigation undertaken into the shuttle service operations by HHO Africa in 2005 (Ref 1), on behalf of the Century City Property Owners’ Association (CCPOA). Century City Public Transport Services Assessment (2008) HHO Africa Century City Property Owners’ Association & Rabie Property Group October 2008 2 2.0 EXISTING SYSTEM EVALUATION 2.1 EXISTING PUBLIC TRANSPORT & RELATED INFRASTRUCTURE 2.1.1 Transport Interchanges There are currently two main transport interchanges/ transfer points serving Century City, as follows : • Ratanga Public Transport Interchange (PTI), located off Ratanga Road in the western Century City precinct. • The Shell service station,