The feasibility study for a proposed R12-billion monorail between Soweto and central Johannesburg was ”Mickey Mouse,” the chairperson of Parliament’s standing committee on transport, Jeremy Cronin, said on Thursday.
Cronin, who was addressing the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) central committee meeting in Pretoria, was asked at a press conference afterwards about the committee’s view on the monorail.
”On the face of what we got it’s not only the process that is poor … it is an unsolicited bid by a Malaysian operator [Newcyc Vision]. It seems the feasibility studies were done by the unsolicited bidder itself,” Cronin said.
Last week Gauteng finance provincial minister Paul Mashatile announced the plan for a monorail service between Soweto and central Johannesburg.
According to the figures given at this press conference, the monorail would carry an estimated 1,5-million passengers daily.
”But where are the 1,5-million people? Official statistics for Soweto’s population is one million. I’m sure they are underestimates but according to national household survey 1,5-million people commute daily in the entire Gauteng, so it does not make sense, which again suggests it was very, very Mickey Mouse,” Cronin said.
He added that worldwide experience have shown that monorails are not suitable as mass transit systems unless they are much more sophisticated and expensive that the one being planned in Gauteng.
”Monorails basically are used in theme parks like Disneyland; they are not mass transit systems,” Cronin said.
He urged Transport Minister Jeff Radebe to consider not only the procedural problems facing the project, but also its feasibility. — Sapa