If all goes as planned, the new public transport interchange (PTI) in Somerset West will be ready to serve thousands of commuters and minibus-taxi operators within the next three weeks, before the worst of winter hits. The contractor is finalising the remaining snags and thereafter the official handover will happen. The City has spent approximately R65 million on this project, the biggest investment in the central business district of Somerset West in recent years, to keep Cape Town moving. Councillor Rob Quintas, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, conducted a site visit to see the brand new facility.
The new PTI is located on two different sites in the Somerset West CBD, one behind the Town Hall and another on the Shoprite side. Together, the facility is approximately 4 000m² in size to accommodate minibus-taxi operators, bus services, informal traders, and thousands of commuters.
‘I am proud and elated to say that commuters and minibus-taxi operators will be able to use this brand new facility before the worst of winter hits. I visited the site earlier today, together with the project management team, and the new PTI is really impressive. We are all looking forward to formally opening the facility sometime in June so that commuters can benefit from the new, safer, convenient, and dignified public transport interchange.
‘We have been working on this project since January 2022 and on this point, I want to also thank the operators, traders, commuters, adjacent businesses and residents for their patience and ongoing support. The construction has been done in phases to limit the inconvenience, but unfortunately, during this time all of those frequenting the area have been impacted. It is important to acknowledge this, and to add that without your cooperation, this project would not have been possible,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Councillor Rob Quintas.
An estimated 1 000 commuters and about 300 minibus-taxis will use the new PTI that will serve 12 destinations: Lwandle, Macassar, Firgrove, Strand, Nomzamo, Sir Lowry’s Pass Town, Zola, Khayelitsha, Stellenbosch, Somerset West and surrounds, and Grabouw. The Golden Arrow Bus Service will also operate from the facility.
‘One of the commitments in our Integrated Development Plan for this term of office is to improve public transport infrastructure and operations so that more commuters can have access to safer, convenient, reliable and quality transport services. The City’s investment of R65 million in the new PTI for Somerset West confirms our resolve to improve urban mobility in Cape Town,’ said Councillor Quintas.
Once operational, the PTI will hold multiple benefits for commuters, pedestrians, public transport operators and traders.
As part of the project, new underground services were installed at the facility, such as a water main, and stormwater infrastructure, canopies or roofs, ablution and refuse buildings, as well as the resurfacing of a section of Andries Pretorius Street.
