Dubbed the ‘Great Walk’ bridge, it is hoped that it will promote the growth of a spatially-integrated Johannesburg, and encourage a move towards non-motorised forms of transport in the city.
New pavements and dedicated cycle lanes are being constructed on Alex’s Alfred Nzo Street, which will link to the bridge from No 3 Square.
The upgrade will include street furniture, better lighting and traffic calming measures in the adjacent streets, said MMC for Transport councillor Christine Walters.
She said the ‘Great Walk’ bridge fitted in perfectly with the city council’s Corridors of Freedom master plan, which intended to undo apartheid spatial planning, and improve communities’ access to economic and job opportunities.
It also promoted the ‘complete street’ concept – a modern global trend in urban design – where the road network and transport systems were regarded as social infrastructure that served the entire community, rather than, predominantly, the private transport user, Walters added.
The term ‘Great Walk’ refers to the fact that an average of 10 000 Alex residents walk or cycle the roughly 5km distance between Alex and Sandton on a daily basis. When completed in 2017, residents will be able to access the bridge at No 3 Square in Alexandra and walk or cycle across the highway to Linden Street in Sandton.
The development forms part of Phase 1C of the Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit programme, which serves the north-east quadrant of the city linking the CBD with Alexandra, Sandton, Randburg, Greenstone, Ivory Park, Rabie Ridge and Midrand.
It will also offer improved linkages to the Gautrain and connect seamlessly with the newly expanded Pan African shopping centre on Watt Street.
Details: Nthatisi Modingoane 011 407 7354 or 082 467 9228 or nthatisem@joburg.org.za
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