Photo by: Bloomberg
The eThekwini Municipality is set to invest R195m in the construction of a new depot in the Bridge City area, north of Durban.
The municipality’s head of communication Tozi Mthethwa said on Wednesday the super depot - which is part of the city’s Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network (IRPTN) - would accommodate a fleet of about 170 single articulated buses.
“The depot will have administration and accommodation facilities for operator support staff and drivers. A refuelling station, storage, washing, cleaning and drying facility for buses and a workshop for mechanical repairs and general maintenance,” said Mthethwa.
She said the first corridor under construction for the IRPTN will run from Bridge City in KwaMashu, to Pinetown CBD.
“Originally the plan was to have six small feeder depots. However this would have driven up costs unnecessarily as each depot would have duplicated offices, workshops and general infrastructure at depots.”
Mthethwa added that the depot will consolidate services that would have been spread across the smaller depots.
“The operational requirements for Corridors C1, C9 and C3 require a base depot in the vicinity of Bridge City being the main inter-modal and transfer terminal for this region,” said Mthethwa.