MYCITI OVERVIEW & LESSONS LEARNT FOR CAPE TOWN
Presentation to the 5th Triennial African Regional Road Conference: CSIR 4 September 2014
Melissa Whitehead Commissioner: TCT INTRODUCTION • MyCiti in the City of Cape Town was launched in 2010 in time for the World Cup. Since then a substantial amount of work has been done and the service has been rolled out to a multiplicity of areas, as detailed.
• There has been a phenomenal demand for and resultant uptake of the MyCiTi service as well as the continual increase in patronage over the whole network, with the Civic Station being the busiest of 42 currently in operation.
• A total of 25 routes are now in operation and there have been more than 10 million passenger journeys to date.
• MyCiti has a fleet of 350 vehicles and 24km of red roads
• Partnerships with the Waterfront and Century City • Table View, Parklands • City Center, Oranjezicht, Gardens • Airport • V&A Waterfront • Salt River, Woodstock, Walmer Estate • Houtbay, Hangberg, Imizamo Yethu • Melkbosstrand, West Beach • Sea Point, Camps Bay • Century City, Big Bay • DuNoon • Atlantis • Khayelitsha • Mitchells Plain DEMAND VS SUPPLY
• The Fare Collection Policy has moved the fare system into a new level of innovation so as to begin to normalise the costs of those that live in displaced locations. This has been done through the manipulation of the peak and off peak philosophy.
• There has now been an introduction of a free card, subject to the loading of a trip. The Ticketing System does, however, remain cumbersome and needs to be refined so as to enable a freer movement of passengers on the system. Queues are a problem.
• Demand has exceeded the projected supply as detailed in the 2010 Business Plan. SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE IN DEMAND
The original projections of the demand for the MyCiti Service, even though Phase 1A, 1B and N2 Express have as yet not been fully rolled out have already been exceeded by 49% . This is a sign that public transport of this status is critical and much needed. This will have to be taken into account as further phases are rolled out and why it is critical that the funding sources be used to their optimal. THE MYCONNECT CARD
• The City of Cape Town was the first in the world to introduce the EMV Card as well as the now Mover Package.
• The City still, however, has not bedded down the systems in the control Centre, which is causing major problems with performance monitoring.
INFRASTRUCTURE TOWARDS AND INTEGRATED TRANSPORT SYSTEM ACROSS CAPE TOWN
• “Red” road – dedicated bus lanes • High-level boarding through multiple doors • Inductive loops at intersections enabling pre-selected signal control • Kassel kerbs • Cameras linked to TMC • Pre-paid gate access using EMV cards CHALLENGES
• Biggest operational challenge is higher bus occupancies while maintaining passenger expectation and ensuring utilisation of existing assets • Higher demand for the MyCiti service than originally projected in the 2010 Business Plan • The AFC System is cumbersome and needs to be streamlined so as to allow for easier access onto MyCiti • The original revenue projection was substantially out. REVENUE ASSUMPTIONS REVIEWED
• Even with the introduction of a state-of-the-art service and related systems being introduced in a South African city, which is intrinsically inefficient and skewed as a result of Apartheid, the IRT would run without a subsidy and that the services and systems would collectively break even and even run at a profit. As a result, the revenue projections were escalated. It should, however, be noted that no public transport service in the world runs at a profit, let alone in a South African city where the poor are marginalized and placed far from places of employment, sometimes between 45-70km away.
• The second premise, which has now been revisited, is that the IRT would replace all existing modes of public transport (scheduled and on-demand). This can be done when there is no limit to financial resources but not in South Africa where the financial resource limitations determine the minimum headways. Further, a city without an on-demand service is not viable as there is no capillary service or choice. LESSONS LEARNT
System optimisation is network wide not route-by-route. The moderation exercise has revealed system intricacies that now need to be changed. It is critical when undertaking systems planning that both the minimum headways in the peak and maximum headways in the off-peak be calculated and factored into the system and resultant costing. LESSONS LEARNT
Continual monitoring, evaluation and performance management is critical to improved service delivery and a responsive service. We, as local government need to ensure that there is accountability to commuters citizens. This will also keep the VOCs accountable. Unwavering political support and involvement it critical to the sustainability of the service. The infrastructure standards must be standardised across the City so as to ensure that there is quality service delivery. Communication is critical. ChapterWAY FORWARD Title Small Descriptor WAY FORWARD
It is critical that a comprehensive approach be taken to enable integrated transport so as to ensure financial viability along with a uniform performance-driven service. The CITP and IPTN review along with the introduction of TOD principles and practices so as to ensure additional sustainability. There is a new operating practice and relationship between on-demand and scheduled services. A new financial management system under the MLTF is critical for sustainability. PREFERRED INTEGRATED PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORK 2032 WAY FORWARD: TOD
0.5km
Density in dwelling units/ha 21 40 75
No of households in catchment area 1 649 3 142 5 890
No peak hour of trips per station catchment 1 649 3 142 5 890 No of stations required to accommodate all PT households 606 318 170 THANK YOU ______Melissa Whitehead Commissioner: Transport for Cape Town Email: [email protected] Cell: 083 289 6415