Johannesburg’s multi-billion-rand bus project incomplete after 16 years

26-02-2025
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Business Tech
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Nearly 16 years after launching, the multi-billion-rand Rea Vaya public transport system in the City of Johannesburg remains incomplete.

The Rea Vaya public transport system began as an ambitious plan to revolutionise urban mobility and align Johannesburg with its image as a World-Class City.

However, the project has still not achieved its founding goal of linking Soweto and Sandton via cheap and efficient mass transport.

The Rea Vaya project was initiated in 2006 after the City of Johannesburg studied and was inspired by Bogotá’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system.

The Bogotá’s Bus Rapid Transit system does not directly generate excessive monetary returns, but its economic impact is significant.

It seeks to alleviate traffic congestion and encourages people to use public transportation, improving overall mobility in the city. This is important for a car-dependent city like Johannesburg.

Rea Vaya, which means “we are going”, aims to provide accessible, reliable, and affordable public transportation for Johannesburg residents while reducing carbon emissions.

The awarding of the 2010 FIFA World Cup to South Africa further accelerated the project as all eyes were on the country.

Rea Vaya’s initial phase, connecting Soweto to the city center and Soccer City, was launched in August 2009, three years after the project’s inception in 2006.

This relatively rapid implementation, partly driven by the 2010 FIFA World Cup, involved navigating bureaucratic processes and engaging with the taxi industry.

Phase 1A comprised 25.5km of dedicated lanes, 30 stations, and 143 buses, plus feeder routes. Phase 1B, completed in February 2014, extended the network from Noordgesig, Soweto, through various suburbs to the CBD.

Currently, 48 stations and 10 median key stations operate along 59 kilometres of trunk routes.

A case study published by Metropolis shows that around 45,000 commuters use these routes daily.

By the end of 2017, Phase 1A and 1B combined cost the ratepayer over R10 billion. While both phases are operational, they represent just a portion of the planned network.

This is because in the years since, Rea Vaya’s progress has been hindered by a divided city council with 10 mayors since 2016, stalled negotiations with the taxi industry, and other issues.

The unfinished phase

Many commuters in Johannesburg would have come across the incomplete but expensive Phase 1C.

Phase 1C was said to operate from the inner city through Hillbrow, Yeoville, Orange Grove, Bramley, and Wynberg to Alexandra and Sandton.

According to the Rea Vaya website, “construction commenced in March 2014 and will be completed by 2017.”

Eight years later, and over R1.5 billion has been spent on this phase, this has not happened yet.

“We were told many years ago that we’d have these buses. I am still using a taxi to get to work. All they have done over the past couple of years is repaint the bus lanes that aren’t being used.,” said Rose, a resident of Yeoville who works in Rivonia.

The status of Phase 1C stations is mixed. While some on the route have been completed, not all work has been finalised, and all remain idle.

Some stations feature sandbags, while vandalism, gunshots, and broken glass have affected others.

“It’s looking so unsightly,” said Tyrell Meyers, DA councillor and former chairman of the transport oversight committee. “It’s been quite a few years. The state of how it’s looking at the moment, I’m very concerned.”

He said that the committee and officials have said that the first phase of Phase 1C will come online in phases starting in June and July 2025.

As of last year, the Sandton Rea Vaya station’s overall construction was 37% complete, and the Gandhi Square station was 42% complete.

Meyers attributes the delays in the Phase 1C to several key factors:

Negotiations with Taxi Associations:

A primary reason for delays was the difficult negotiations with taxi associations.

These associations, anticipating their incorporation into a bus operating company, placed “high demands” on the city.

Thus far, hundreds of taxi bosses have been incorporated, in deals worth hundreds of millions of rands between them and the City.

For example, the owners of 317 minibus taxis were paid R263 Million for agreeing to have their vehicles removed from the road. Each owner pocketed about R830,000 per taxi.

However, many still have taken aim at the system. Recently, the City of Johannesburg announced the suspension of the Rea Vaya bus services amid safety concerns.

This comes after two Rea Vaya feeder bus drivers were shot and killed in Soweto.

Construction Issues

Delays also stemmed from construction-related problems, including issues with interchanges, bridge construction, and the conversion of high stations to low stations.

Political and External Factors

The 10 administrations since 2016 and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic further impacted the project.

According to Meyers, the change in administration shifted focus to the JITI (Johannesburg inner city transport infrastructure), while the pandemic caused the Rea Vaya project to be sidelined.

Bus Depot Encroachment

Much of the Alexandra Bus Depot that was meant to be utilised for the Rea Vaya Phase 1C route has been invaded by an informal settlement, despite over R140 million spent on the project.

In 2024, the Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) announced that another R170 million has been set to complete the investment in phase 1C infrastructure to bring it to operational readiness.

“The project was phased according to budget availability, beginning with the construction of a blueprint station on Katherine Street, which set the groundwork for the rest of the project,” JDA spokesperson Elias Nkabinde recently said.

“Following this, we focused on the Watt Interchange, one of the City’s largest infrastructure developments by both scope and scale,” he said.

“This interchange is essential to the Phase 1C trunk route, acting as a crucial artery to facilitate efficient Rea Vaya operations.”

Nkabinde added that R32 million had been allocated for the two incomplete Rea Vaya routes.

“The longer the timelines aren’t met, the more cost it is going to be to the ratepayers and to residents,” said Meyers.

“It should be the priority of any administration… especially with the investment that has been put in, to be not only completed but made a success,” added Meyers.

The Alexandra Bus Company (ABC) is slated to run Phase 1C.

Company in turmoil

In December 2023, Rea Vaya Phase1A operator PioTrans entered business rescue after a creditor attempted to repossess its buses.

Senior Business Rescue Practitioner Mahier Tayob criticised the company for not seeking rescue sooner and plans to dissolve the current board, take control of operations, and hold those responsible for mismanagement accountable.

PioTrans’ 12-year contract to operate Johannesburg’s bus rapid transit system ended in January 2023 amid complaints about unreliable services.

Tayob noted long-standing issues, including alleged fraud and maladministration, and emphasised the company’s failure to inform creditors about its financial troubles, leading to its business rescue status.

”It has been widely reported that there was maladministration, if not fraud, at PioTrans, and it is unfortunate because the company should have been the nominated choice a long time ago,” said Tayob at the time.

“For many years, there was no model for good business practices. The systems did not work. If systems were in place, they were violated. It was a recipe for disaster,” he told the Daily Maverick.

“The company’s previous board continued to treat the crisis as normal. They managed the affairs of the company in the hope that it will one day come right,” he added.

In 2024, Johannesburg Transport MMC Kenny Kunene attributed corruption to the issues plaguing the Rea Vaya bus service and PioTrans.

The project has also seen some questionable use of taxpayer funds. For example, News24 reported that ratepayers have been paying more than R750,000 in rent for one portable toilet at an incomplete station.

‘No comment’

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