By Anna Cox and Janine du Plessis
Motorists are likely to face chaos on the N1 from October 1 when the left lane will be closed to vehicles with only a driver.
The Gauteng department of transport, roads and works will turn the left-hand lane in both directions between Johannesburg and Pretoria into a high-occupancy lane, allowing only vehicles with one or more passengers, taxis and buses to use it.
Drivers not adhering to the multiple-occupant rule will be pulled off and fined R200.
| It would be stopped within a few days |
The AA is a key roleplayer in the scheme, and AA spokesperson Gary Ronald says driver-only cars will be given "a reasonable distance" from on and off-ramps to get out of and into the left lane.
It was decided to use the left-hand lane to allow for easy law enforcement, he said, but this would not apply at the Allandale, New Road and Buccleuch on-ramps, off-ramps and interchanges.
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Ronald said if the new scheme was found to be causing congestion problems, it would be stopped within a few days.
Although the plan kicks off in just over a week, it has not yet been decided for which part of the motorway the lane will be implemented.
The transport MEC is expected to make an official announcement only next week.
The plan forms part of the new Intelligence Transport System (ITS), which will be launched on September 29.
Gauteng department spokesperson Alfred Nhlapo said the system will be piloted during Public Transport Month, in October, in an attempt to encourage people to share cars.
The multi-occupant lane is only one element in a series of changes intended to ease pressure on the roads and to improve public transport, he said.
Every year vehicles using the Ben Schoeman highway are increasing by seven percent - or 21 000 passenger trips - a day.
It is a very busy route, carrying more than
100 000 vehicles a day and more than 6 000 vehicles in a southerly direction alone during peak hour.
"There are many benefits to this - people sharing cars cut their costs," he said.
"They will get to work faster in the dedicated lane and there will be less pollution. It works overseas and in Cape Town, so there is no reason it should not work here."
The Democratic Alliance has criticised the plan: "We believe it will turn the daily traffic on the road from congested to chaotic. The department should think again before it implements this proposal."
"You cannot try to persuade people to use public transport if it is so weak and is an option only as a last resort".
The South African National Roads Agency has already started a pilot project on the Ben Schoeman highway, involving ITS, to facilitate traffic flow.
This includes CCTV, webcams, traffic monitoring devices and lit-up signs - to alert motorists to back-ups, accidents and breakdowns, and to give information about time delays and alternative routes.
An extra lane will be opened on a stretch of the N1 highway in October to deal with the heavy congestion.
This forms part of a plan to dedicate one lane to taxis, buses and other vehicles occupied by several people all along the N1 between Johannesburg and Pretoria during peak hours.
Priya Pillay of Sanral said the shoulder lane would essentially act as a fourth lane.
It would only be opened when necessary to deal with heavy traffic flows.
The department hopes the initiative will promote the use of car pools and public transport.
Alfred Nhlapo, spokesperson for the provincial department of transport, said the idea was to run the project on the N1 highway at pressure points between Johannesburg and Pretoria.
"There will be police to guide traffic (to the correct lane) and there will initially be no fines if someone does something wrong."
- This article was originally published on page 1 of Pretoria News on September 22, 2006
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