If everything goes according to plan, Gauteng’s 25-year integrated transport master plan (ITMP25) could be “published by the end of July”, says ITMP25 project leader Jack van der Merwe.

The 25-year plan is being developed on the back of a realisation that current traffic congestion and land-use patterns in Gauteng do not support the long-term economic growth and development of the region.

“The ITMP25 vision wants to deliver a world-class sustainable transport system,” says Van der Merwe.

However, he adds that the plan has to be managed as a social project, rather than a transport project, as it seeks to reshape Gauteng in more aspects than the construction of mere road and rail systems.

Gauteng makes up only 1.42% of South Africa’s land area, but is home to 12.27-million people, or 23.7% of the country’s population. This equates to 675 people per square kilom- etre – a number which is expected to rise sharply over the next few years.

The province generates 33.7% of South Africa’s gross domestic product.

Van der Merwe says the Gauteng govern-ment is “trying to develop” the small province as a global city region, similar to Singapore, especially as its three main cities continue to merge as the population expands.

He adds that the ITMP25 project has to consider several key issues, such as a change in approach to low-cost housing, as more units are needed per hectare in order to ensure land densification in the fast-growing province.

This will require, for example, multistorey buildings, rather than single-storey dwellings.

Van der Merwe says the plan will also look at, among other issues, the strict enforcement of the urban periphery; enabling road-based public transport delivery; improving the efficiency of the rail system; mainstreaming nonmotorised transport; establishing high-occupancy lanes on highways; and reserving land for a third international airport.

The first short-term step in putting in place a transport plan for Gauteng is to establish a single transport authority, which will look at the province’s transport needs holistically, he adds.

“If we don’t succeed here, we might as well not bother with the rest.”

This particular goal forms part of a shorter-term, five-year Gauteng transport plan, drawn up to look at matters that requires urgent attention prior to the implementation of the ITMP25.