The idea for the bridge, which will serve to reduce travel times and accidents, was initiated by the Joburg Development Agency and City of Joburg and was started after a traffic and transport study was conducted in the area.
The study indicated that at least 10 000 pedestrians travelled between Alexandra and Sandton on a daily basis.
These pedestrians travel approximately 5.2 kilometres along Rautenbach Avenue and Roosevelt Street to Grayston Drive.
In a bid to improve access between these areas, the city council planned to build 5.2 kilometres of walking and cycling lanes including on the bridge over the M1.
The dedicated walk and cycle way will start from No 3 Square in Alexandra to Sandton near the Grayston Avenue Bridge along Katherine Street.
The bridge forms part of the city council’s Corridors of Freedom project, which aims to address apartheid‘s spatial planning by re-stitching the city, bringing people from the city’s outskirts closers to employment and economic opportunities.
“In 2013 the executive mayor introduced the Corridors of Freedom as areas where there can be walking, cycling and public transport which is safe, reliable and affordable,” said Johannesburg Development Agency CEO Thanduxolo Mendrew.
“This bridge satisfies that basic need that talks about citizens’ rights to a spatially integrated city.”
Mendrew said the bridge is set to be one of the most noteworthy structures constructed on the route.
Mendrew believes that this bridge is destined to be as iconic an addition to the city’s skyline as the Nelson Mandela Bridge.
To find out more about the bridge or to view an artist’s impression video of the bridge below:
