Vela VKE forms part of JV developing Rustenburg RRT system
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PRESS RELEASE
Vela VKE forms part of JV developing Rustenburg RRT system
25 October, 2012:Professional consulting engineering company Vela VKE – which recently became a part of the SMEC Group following the company’s successful merger in June 2012 with the Australian-based global engineering consultancy firm – is playing a major role in the development of public transport in Rustenburg.
Vela VKE (Part of the SMEC Group) head of Rustenburg (North West Province) division Tshepo Matshego points out that the company is responsible for the design and construction monitoring phases of the North-West Corridor of the Rustenburg rapid transport (RRT) system. The project is a joint venture involving UWP Consulting Engineers and Phatwe Consulting Engineers, and is estimated to cost R640-million.
"This corridor of the Rustenburg Rapid Transport project involves the development of a public transport route that connects Rustenburg CBD to Phokeng and areas to the north reaching well into the Moses Kotane Local Municipal area. Vela VKE was appointed to the project in August 2011 to design various aspects of the project, and we are currently busy with the conceptual design of the sections in the Rustenburg CBD and from just north of Phokeng, where the project starts, towards Rustenburg," he explains.
Matshego highlights the fact that the Vela VKE/ UWP / Phatwe joint venture was able to complete the design of a section of the trunk route, consisting of new concrete bus lanes and rehabilitation of existing mixed traffic lanes, within five months - four months ahead of schedule, due to municipal requests. "We started with the concept in October 2011, and the tender was advertised in March 2012. In that time, we had to fast-track our design, in order to ensure that the municipality met its budgetary obligations."
Matshego believes that the strong working relationship within the joint venture ensured that the conceptual design of the bus lanes was completed successfully, despite the considerable time constraints. "Both Vela VKE and UWP, in the joint venture, have in-depth experience from working on previous BRT systems nationwide, and we were able to rely on that experience to make accurate assumptions."
Under the joint venture, Vela VKE is responsible for the section of the Rustenburg RRT system that runs on the provincial route between Tlhabane and Phokeng, adds Matshego. "The CBD section forms a loop along OR Tambo Street and turns at Bosch Street and Nelson Mandela Street, while Thabo Mbeki Street will have the major transfer station along this route."
According to Matshego, one of the main objectives of the project is to get taxis, local buses and private vehicle users to buy-in and embrace the RRT system, in order to reduce the number of vehicles moving in and out of the major economic route, by providing an efficient, reliable and safe public transport system and feeder system that connects outlying villages onto the trunk routes to the CBD.
"From a traffic point of view, a study has been completed in terms of traffic volumes on that route, as it is an existing road, and we now plan to establish whether it is more feasible to add an additional bus lane, or to utilise one of the existing lanes," he continues.
The entire Rustenburg Rapid Transport infrastructure project involves the development of new bus lanes, non-motorised transport lanes, numerous bus stations with required municipal services, a main transfer station, IT connection and control systems, bus depots and a control centre, in addition to street lighting.
Matshego believes that the Rustenburg Rapid Transport system will be one of the best in the country, when construction work is expected to be fully complete in 2015. "Having worked on a number of previous BRT systems across the country, Vela VKE (part of the SMEC Group) and its partners have gained extensive insight into maximising the efficiency of the system, while regenerating the region with new infrastructure. With this in mind, greater emphasis is placed on pedestrian safety and the section of non-motorised transport, which will not only provide world class facilities to cyclists and pedestrians, but also to blind and disabled people in general," he concludes.
Ends
Notes to the Editor
There are numerous photographs specific to this press release. Please visit http://media.ngage.co.za and click the Vela VKE link.
About SMEC
Australian based SMEC has more than 4 000 employees and an established network of over 60 offices worldwide. SMEC provides consultancy services for the lifecycle of a project to a broad range of sectors, which include; hydropower, transport, water, natural resources and environment, geotechnical, mining, tunnelling,, urban development, renewable energy, power, government and advisory services and social infrastructure development. Following the Vela VKE merger, the SMEC Group now has over 5 000 employees and an established network of over 70 offices in 36 countries throughout Australia, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Pacific, North and South America.
About Vela VKE
Vela VKE has more than 1 000 employees and an established network of offices in all nine provinces within South Africa, as well as offices in Namibia and other SADC countries. With over 60 years of engineering experience, Vela VKE provides its clients with cost-effective, comprehensive and innovative solutions. Vela VKE offers a range of professional consulting engineering services including; conceptualisation, planning, design, management, construction supervision, operation, maintenance and rehabilitation of infrastructure.
Vela VKE (Part of the SMEC Group) Contact
Tshepo Matshego
Head Rustenburg Division
Phone: (014) 592-2834
Fax: (014) 592-5480
Email: kostas [dot] rontiris [at] smec [dot] com
Media Contact
Renay Tandy
NGAGE Public Relations
Phone: (011) 867-7763
Fax: 086 512 3352
Cell: 082 562 5088
Email: renay [at] ngage [dot] co [dot] za
Web: www.ngage.co.za