These were the five biggest stories in South Africa’s transport industry this week.
Cape Town’s new traffic lights are coming to the rest of South Africa
Cape Town’s new traffic light system may soon be implemented nationwide following a successful pilot programme.
The innovative traffic signals were first introduced in May 2022 at important intersections as a measure to reduce confusion among private motorists and public transport operators.
They incorporate a separate white signal to indicate when a bus has right of way, as previous versions using the traditional red-and-green system were often misread by other motorists, leading to accidents.
4 new Chery brands are coming to South Africa
Chery has confirmed to TopAuto that four more of its sub-brands will be brought to South Africa, though not in an official capacity.
The incoming models will not be sold under their original Chinese nameplates, but will instead adopt one of the local division’s three existing badges – Chery, Jaecoo, and Omoda.
The brands confirmed for a local introduction include Exeed, iCar, Karry, and Luxeed.
Construction mafias wreak havoc on Cape Town roadworks
The City of Cape Town’s efforts to build and maintain its road infrastructure continue to be undermined by criminals attempting to steal funds.
The criminals, now often referred to as “the construction mafia”, intimidate contractors and their workforce with threats and acts of violence in an attempt to secure a large portion of the budget allocated for public projects.
The most recent confrontation resulted in a security guard being shot in Phillipe near a MyCiti bus centre, bringing the number of extortion incidents in Cape Town in the past 14 months up to a total of 96.
VW discontinues most affordable Amarok models in South Africa
VW has discontinued the 110kW Amarok models in South Africa, which served as the entry-level units for both single and double-cab ranges.
The bakkie now has three powertrains at its disposal producing 125kW, 154kW, and 184kW, respectively.
The loss of the base engine means the Volkswagen’s starting price has gone up by R76,900 for the two-door and R51,500 for the four-door models.
Goodbye e-tolls – Gauteng borrowing billions to shut down tolling system
The Gauteng government has “approached financial institutions” to raise the funds necessary to pay its required portion of the e-toll debt.
The province is required to pay 30% of the debt and interest incurred by the tolling project, which is estimated at R12.9 billion.
The e-toll gantries are scheduled for shutdown on 31 March, after which they will be repurposed for other uses.
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