More than 70 percent of ticket holders for the 2006 World Cup Games in Germany took public transportation, biked, or walked to the matches.

The Role of Transit in International Sport

For one month in 2010, 32 teams will compete in the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa.  With millions of fans from 188 different countries flocking to nine different cities to cheer for their favorite teams, South Africa has had to make major improvements to its infrastructure to accommodate the influx of visitors.  The South African government is investing more than $1.2 billion in infrastructure projects to be ready for the event.

In anticipation of the 2010 Games, Johannesburg is constructing a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system.  It is the first unsubsidized public bus system in South Africa and will be operated by private contractors.  With the goal of being accessible to more than 85 percent of the city’s population, the system is expected to cost about $270 million.  The BRT system was branded as “Rea Vaya” or “we are going,” with 60 ft. articulated buses running on more than 200 miles of dedicated lanes throughout the city’s neighborhoods.  At various strategic locations throughout the system, the BRT service will provide connections at 40 major multimodal transit centers located throughout the network, and be able to move approximately 430,000 people every day.

On Oct. 2, 2009 Chicago will know whether it will have the opportunity to welcome the world for the 2016 Olympic Games. It is important that our current transit system is transformed into an easy-to-use, multilingual, and accessible network that will improve mobility throughout Chicago’s neighborhoods and promote seamless transitions throughout the region. BRT proposals have proven to be easy to use, quick to implement, and effectively able to move large amounts of people.  BRT just may be the right option for Chicago to add to our existing transit service.

Photo courtesy of Rika Theron 

For Additional Information:

• Host City – 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
• Green Team Climbs Aboard South Africa’s World Cup Transport Plan – Global Environmental Facility

 

NEWS

Local News

RDA throws support behind ballot question – Post-Tribune “Members of the RDA executive board on Tuesday said they will campaign -- without spending any of the agency's tax dollars-- in support of a ‘yes’ vote in favor of the creation of a Regional Transportation Authority.”

Suburban group worried train plan will derail – Crains “West suburban officials concerned about train noise are objecting to recent changes proposed for CREATE, a publicly and privately funded multibillion-dollar regionwide plan to reduce railroad bottlenecks in the Chicago area.”

Transit use up in Indiana, Illinois – Northwest Indiana Times “Environment America said in a report that transit ridership increased more than 9 percent last year compared to 2007.”

High-speed rail star of Obama sustainable plan – Northwest Indiana Times “‘High-speed passenger rail is coming to America, and that's the biggest part of building sustainable and livable communities,’ LaHood said in sparking the biggest applause of the afternoon at the annual luncheon of Chicago's Metropolitan Planning Council.”

RTA thinking positive about negative outlook --  Daily Herald “As a pre-emptive strike against the high anxiety of this summer's paratransit funding crisis, officials Tuesday came up with an emergency plan to handle a shortfall in 2010.”

County backs bus system – Northwest Herald “A start-up intergovernmental bus system will get $275,000 of the county’s mass transit sales tax money.”

Joliet center part of statewide rail push – State Journal-Register “Springfield’s concerns with high-speed rail service and increased freight train traffic are part of a much larger rail-improvement push in Illinois involving hundreds of millions in state and federal dollars.”

Elgin-O'Hare plan would cut travel to airport by nearly half, study says – Chicago Tribune “Building the long-planned extension of the Elgin-O'Hare Expressway and a west bypass road connecting two interstate highways would cut travel times by up to half to O'Hare International Airport, according to a preliminary study the state released on Friday.”

World News

Pass popularity costs TTC – Toronto Star “Ridership is running at a record high, projected to hit 473 million rides this year. But revenue per passenger is lower because more people are buying cheaper, transferable Metropasses.”

In Phoenix, Weekend Users Make Light Rail a Success – New York Times “The light rail here, which opened in December, has been a greater success than its proponents thought it would be, but not quite the way they envisioned.”

AASHTO President Renews Call for a National Strategic Freight Plan – AASHTO Journal “Collectively known as the Freight Stakeholders Coalition, the group is urging Congress to consider major reforms in the next surface transportation authorization bill.”

Legislation for a 21st Century Transportation System Doesn't Come Easy – New York Times “Even off the Hill, where key players agree massive reform is needed to make the system more performance-based and effective, there is no consensus on exactly what that new system would look like and what those performance goals should be.”

High-speed rail competition heats up with new funding – Las Vegas Sun “The competition between two proposed high-speed trains running from Las Vegas to Southern California ignited anew today after federal authorities announced $45 million for the maglev project that had lost key political support earlier this year.”

Road and Rail Spending Proposals Stall as Lawmakers Punt on Revenue Fix – New York Times “Many in the transportation community are warning that any reform efforts -- including attempts to cut greenhouse gas emissions -- will fail if Washington does not find the political courage to tell Americans that they will have to foot the bill.”

Land-use planning running behind transit infrastructure – Vancouver Sun “Despite all of the talk about improving public transit infrastructure in Metro Vancouver to promote more compact communities and ultimately reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we can't seem to get the timing to mesh between land use planning and transit infrastructure.”

Resources

• Where High-Speed Rail Works Best – America2050

• Getting What You Paid For—Paying For What You Get: Proposals for the Next Transportation Reauthorization – Cato Institute

• Where We Want To Be: Home Location Preferences And Their Implications For Smart Growth – Victoria Transport Policy Institute

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Contact Information
For comments, suggestions or submissions, please contact Emily Tapia Lopez, Associate, at etapia@metroplanning.org or 312-863-6047.