As the City of Cape Town expects to become the most populous metropolitan area in South Africa over the coming years, it is preparing its transport infrastructure for the influx of vehicles through several road innovations that have never before been implemented in the country.
Taking hints from international best practices and applying them locally, Cape Town authorities have found innovative ways to transform limited space and budgets into safer roads that can accommodate more traffic.
“The City of Cape Town is at a pinnacle point for transport innovation – be it in the recycled material we use to resurface roads, artificial intelligence to improve road safety and facilitate traffic flow, or bold steps to ensure uninterrupted power supply and infrastructure resilient to vandalism and theft,” said the city.
It highlighted bold innovations currently being implemented, or which have already been instated, as the first to be pioneered by any municipality in South Africa.
Thermal pedestrian sensors
Cape Town has installed thermal sensors at key pedestrian crossings to detect whether there is any pedestrian movement.
Should the pedestrian leave the detection zone before the pedestrian cycle is activated, the pedestrian request will be cancelled altogether. Thus, vehicles will not be stopped unnecessarily.
“This innovative system is widely used in Europe to improve traffic,” said the city.
These sensors are situated at four pedestrian crossings in Blaauwberg – along Marine Drive opposite Milky Lane, along Otto du Plessis Drive opposite Seal Road, along Otto du Plessis Drive at Shell Road, and along Otto du Plessis Drive close to Hill Road, opposite Doodles.
Reversible road
In June 2024, Cape Town activated a first-of-its-kind (for the country) reversible bus lane along the R27 between Loxton Road and Broad Road in Milnerton.
This bus lane, for exclusive use by MyCiTi vehicles, permits inbound travel towards the Civic Centre in the morning and outbound travel towards Table View in the afternoon.
The alternating direction flows are controlled and monitored through a technological system designed and implemented by the City.
Two thermal Artificial Intelligence-powered cameras have been installed at the entrances of this lane to detect unauthorised vehicles, reverse entry, and entry-without-exit.
The system is monitored from the Transport Management Centre (TMC) using a custom bus-lane dashboard.
Operating personnel at the TMC manage the system and actively monitor the lane for safety concerns. If any problem is detected, both red bus lane signs revert to closed and an alarm is raised at the TMC.
Underground theft protection
To protect valuable infrastructure such as traffic signal controllers and uninterrupted power supply (UPS) systems at traffic intersections from vandalism and theft, Cape Town is piloting underground storage chambers, also referred to as prefabricated underground utility manholes.
The prefabricated chambers are installed a few meters below the surface and are attached to a concrete base.
The traffic signal controllers and UPS system are stored inside the chamber, which is then sealed with a coded mechanical locking system.
The chamber is non-metallic and ribbed for strength and has no resale value. Given that it is underground, attached to concrete, and can only be opened by trained technicians, this new innovation is a solution to the ongoing theft and vandalism of expensive City equipment at hotpot intersections.
Sky circle
Cape Town recently announced it is about halfway through the construction of a freestanding elevated traffic circle at the intersection of Govan Mbeki Road (M9) and Jan Smuts Drive (M17) in Lansdowne.
This project forms part of the ongoing roll-out of the MyCiTi service to the metro-south east.
It’s described as a hollow circle standing 6.2m off the ground, letting in light to the intersection below.
Once complete, the so-called “sky circle” will be for the exclusive use of the MyCiTi buses.
“The free-standing elevated circle will be the first in South Africa, demonstrating civil engineering at its best, to the benefit of all road users,” said the city.
“By separating the MyCiTi buses from general traffic, the City will ensure the service operates optimally between Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha and Wynberg and Claremont without being delayed by the traffic or congestion at the ground level of the intersection.”
This design will benefit MyCiTi commuters as it will reduce travelling time to their destinations.
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