22/Transport!! 12/12/200312:10pmPage618 Shaun Harris / PictureNET Africa 22/Transport!! 12/12/2003 12:10 pm Page 619 chapter 22 Transport The Department of Transport’s vision is one ment, with people, particularly the poor, of a transport system that builds a better life often having to travel long distances. for all. Its mission is to promote affordable This reduces the economic efficiency of transport access and mobility that is safe, the transport system and has a high social reliable and internationally competitive. cost because transport consumes a relative- The Department’s main objective is to ly large proportion of the disposable income formulate, co-ordinate, implement and of the poor. monitor transport strategies and policies in Coupled with this is the high rate of trans- general, and to enhance safety, improve port accidents, on both roads and rail. public transport and develop transport infra- Overcoming these problems is the central structure. challenge facing the Department of The other key objectives include: Transport. The Department is working to •facilitating access and affordability of pub-improve and expand infrastructure, and lic transport to the commuting public through subsidies, reduce the costs of public •planning, developing and maintaining transport. transport infrastructure to improve mobili- Transport policy is built on the framework ty and quality of life and contribute to eco- set out by the Moving South Africa project, nomic development which began in 1997, and the National •promoting sector and enterprise reforms Land Transport Transition Act, 2000 (Act 22 of to create a reliable, safe and competitive 2000). transport system. These set out a vision of an efficient public transport system with the use of targeted Policy subsidies, and the provision of a high-quality, comprehensive infrastructure. Transport infrastructure in South Africa is The Department is continuously reviewing, deeply affected by the disparities arising developing, monitoring and evaluating its from previous patterns of spatial develop- policies and strategies. Public-transport subsidies In 2003, South African Airways won the follow- ing awards: Best African Airline, Best Domestic Transport subsidies are a potentially impor- Airline, Best International Airline flying to South tant tool for improving efficiency, access and Afric (ASATA Diners Club), Best Airline in Africa, equity. In the past they have been targeted Best Cabin Crew in Africa (Skytrax), Best Airline loosely and implemented selectively, but the based in Africa (the Official Airline Guide) and Top Airline in Africa (the British weekly maga- Department is trying to target subsidies at zine, Travel Bulletin). those with the greatest need – vulnerable 619 22/Transport!! 12/12/2003 12:10 pm Page 620 South Africa Yearbook 2003/04 groups such as learners, people with disabili- and modes of transport used by the majority ties, the aged, the unemployed and the of citizens, to help government to intervene employed poor – to maximise economic and properly in the allocation of subsidy and social gains. transport spending. The strategy also seeks to integrate trans- By July 2003, the Department was conduct- port that is accessible to people with ing a strategic review of public-transport disabilities, and to promote the provision of policy and strategy, including the development accessible transport across all modes of of a policy on the targeting of public-transport public transport. subsidies for bus and commuter rail. The Significant additional funds have been Department allocates R4 billion per annum allocated to the Department – over R1,5 billion to public-transport subsidies for bus and – to help to deliver more effective and efficient commuter-rail transportation. public transport. Subsidised bus services currently operate in The Department is continuing to improve 36 local authorities in the country. Most the efficiency of bus subsidies. It has already subsidies are funded from the Department of converted 30% of bus-subsidy contracts to Transport’s budget, while provincial budgets more efficient, competitive tenders, and the provide for additional subsidies in certain remaining 70% were expected to be converted areas. during 2003/04. It is also reforming contract During the 2001/02 financial year, almost provisions to ensure greater value for money 380 million subsidised passenger trips were for the Department. The passenger rail recorded, while subsidised buses covered network also receives significant amounts of approximately 362 million kilometres (km). money. On average, each subsidised bus passenger In 2003, the Department of Transport received approximately R198 in subsidies per commissioned Statistics South Africa to month, constituting some 6,7% of the average conduct a nationwide survey on travel patterns household income. Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) By June 2003, the Department of Transport By June 2003, the curriculum for traffic-officer training was being revised to extend it from six was engaged in a process of developing a months to one year. BEE Strategy for the transport sector. The proposed change is expected to take place The objective of the process is to identify in 2004. The revised course will meet the South African Qualifications Authority’s registration the challenges, set targets, and develop a requirements. monitoring and evaluation framework for the The course content will be modernised and implementation of the Strategy. more subjects that are relevant to the operational responsibilities of traffic officers, such as first aid The process includes stakeholders from and trauma-management skills, will be intro- all the key subsectors, such as maritime, duced. The revised basic course will further close the aviation, rail, road construction, minibus-taxis, gap between metro and traffic courses as it will buses and road freight. have the same legal content as the South African The proposed BEE targets will require Police Service course. All 10 traffic training colleges have been evaluated for the first time in provinces to set aside a minimum of 30% of six years. services to be contracted to companies with Certain metropolitan police departments have at least 50,1% previously disadvantaged indi- replaced traditional traffic departments. In such cases, traffic policing duties and functions have viduals (PDIs). Of the remaining 70% of servic- also been taken over. es, a minimum of 35% PDI equity ownership 620 22/Transport!! 12/12/2003 12:10 pm Page 621 Transport will be required, together with 10% subcon- Presidential rural nodes. This Programme has tracting of services to small, medium and four subcomponents: micro enterprises (SMMEs)/PDIs. •The promotion of ownership and usage of The process of developing a Maritime various rural transport operations (e.g. Transport BEE Strategy has been under way human/animal-drawn carts) in low-income since the end of May 2003. rural areas and at local project level. A steering committee was nominated, with •The creation and/or improvement of the objective of overseeing the formulation of appropriate, safe on- and off-the-road rural- the Draft Maritime Transport BEE Strategy. transport infrastructure (on-the-road in- By September 2003, the Draft Strategy was cludes access roads, low-level access available for comment from industry. bridges, etc. and off-the-road includes foot- paths, side-tracks, as well as various safety Non-motorised transport gadgets). Greater emphasis will be placed on the •Alleviating rural poverty by promoting the promotion of non-motorised transport, economic as well as strong industrial primarily with a view to increasing transport dimension of NMT project operations and mobility and accessibility, mainly in rural areas. infrastructure (e.g. SMMEs). This will be In his budget vote speech in June 2002, the achieved by exploiting to the maximum Minister of Transport, Mr Dullah Omar, local expertise in the running and sustaining announced that the Department would roll of the Programme. out the Non-Motorised Transport (NMT) •Impact assessment and programme evalua- Programme in the Kgalagadi and Botlhabela tion. The main objective of this component is to provide meaningful contributions to the rural transport strategy. By June 2003, a total of 16 pedestrian roadshows Transport safety were held, aimed at promoting pedestrian road Increased emphasis will be placed on safety safety through the use of music artists and role models and the distribution of retro-reflective issues in all transport modes. The Road to material such as sashes and bandanas. Safety Strategy, transportation of dangerous Between April 2002 and June 2003, the goods by road, the establishment of a Maritime Western Cape built two pedestrian bridges – one on the N2 and the other on the R300. Other Rescue Centre, the setting-up of the Railway pedestrian bridges were constructed in Safety Regulator and the Road-Traffic Manage- Hammanskraal and Witbank in Gauteng. ment Corporation (RTMC) are examples of this. By June 2003, there were 2 826 scholar patrols, with 162 in the Eastern Cape, 65 in the Northern The RTMC Bill, which improves the structure Cape, 185 in Mpumalanga, 48 in the North West, and systems of the Board, was approved for 109 in KwaZulu-Natal, 1 467 in Gauteng, 96 in submission to Parliament in December 2002. Limpopo, 285 in the Free State and some 200 in the Western Cape. The Department of Transport Each province had to identify 10 hazardous has centralised the administration and control of locations and prioritise three for improvement. all scholar patrols including equipment and uniforms. Some 20 000 scholar patrol bibs have Work is under way to improve safety in those been distributed in all nine provinces. locations. Of the envisaged 26 Junior Traffic Training Centres, 20 had been completed and six were under construction by June 2003. New Partnership for Africa’s The Centres are aimed at educating children Development (NEPAD) through simulating the real road environment. In From a transport point of view, key issues in the most rural areas, trailers, which will act as Centres, will be distributed to the different creating an effectively co-ordinated African provinces.