MyCiTi operating times and routes in Atlantis extended

Residents of Atlantis have, since the roll-out of the T02 trunk route and remainder of the MyCiTi feeder routes on 4 July 2015, responded with valid comments on how the City can improve the service.

'We took great care to listen and have already made some adjustments to the timetables. In addition, on 5 September 2015, the City will extend the feeder routes in Protea Park, Saxonsea and Robinvale to bring the MyCiTi stops within walking distance (about 500 m) of residents' homes. All in all, we will add approximately 8km to the existing routes and 11 temporary bus stops. The stops will be made permanent once the demand along the new routes has been tested and it has been confirmed that the locations meet the passenger needs,' said the City's Mayoral Committee member: Transport for Cape Town, councillor Brett Herron.

Some of the changes that were already implemented on Saturday 18 July 2015 are as follows:

• Buses on the feeder routes - Routes 232, 233, 234, 235, 236 and 237 - depart earlier on weekday mornings so that passengers arriving at the MyCiTi station in Atlantis are in time for the first departures of the T02 and T03 buses to Melkbosstrand, Table View, Omuramba, and Cape Town

• The timetables for the feeder routes on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays have also been adjusted so that passengers are in time for the first departures of the T02 and T03 buses from the Atlantis station to Table View and Cape Town

• The frequency of the buses on the feeder routes has been improved in the weekday morning peak hour period so that commuters can expect a bus as follows: Route 231 - every 15 minutes; Route 232 - every 12 minutes; Route 233 - every six minutes; Route 234 - every 10 minutes; Route 235 - every 20 minutes; Route 236 - every six minutes; and Route 237 - every 20 minutes

• The frequency of the buses on the T03 trunk route from Atlantis to Melkbosstrand, Table View and Omuramba has been improved in the morning peak-hour period, with a bus departing from the Atlantis station on average every six minutes

During the past four weeks, officials from Transport for Cape Town, the City's transport authority, attended five community meetings in Atlantis, Mamre and Pella to engage with residents about the MyCiTi service and to take note of their comments.

'We took their suggestions to heart and made some adjustments to the MyCiTi routes and stops. These changes will be implemented over the next eight weeks. Officials will now provide feedback to the community about the intended changes at another seven meetings, one of which is taking place in Pella today. I want to thank our residents for contributing to the fine-tuning of the service as the success of this roll-out depends on us working together,' said Herron.

The changes to be implemented on 5 September 2015 will be as follows:

• Route 232: every second bus will make a loop of approximately 2 km along Acacia Crescent in Protea Park. Buses will stop at six temporary bus stops along the loop.

• Route 233: every second bus will make a loop of approximately 1,43 km along Hoop Crescent in Saxonsea. Buses will stop at two temporary stops along the loop.

• Route 237: the route will now run in both directions, adding an additional 2,3 km in each direction with two temporary stops along Starling Road and another along Magnolia Street in Robinvale.

'I want to request our residents to please take note of these changes and to be patient as the service is settling in. The MyCiTi service is reliable, safe and affordable and I am confident that the residents from Atlantis will fully enjoy these benefits once they have become accustomed to the new routes and timetables,' said Herron.

Another set of changes will be implemented on 31 October 2015:

• Route 234: an alternate route to Mamre with 12 new stops (this in addition to the existing Route 234)

• Route 236: an extension of the current route (an additional 850 m) with three new stops along Jonkershoek Road

• A night service - 21:00 to 23:00 - will be introduced to Mamre and Pella

• A night service - 21:00 to 23:00 - will be introduced to Protea Park, Beacon Hill and Sherwood

• Some of the trunk buses (the 12-metre high-floor buses) will start their first trips in Mamre and Pella before they travel to the Atlantis station on the T02 and T03 trunk routes on weekday mornings, providing residents in these areas with a more direct route to Table View, Melkbosstrand, Omuramba and the Civic Centre.

'We will continue to engage with residents from Atlantis in the coming weeks and months to adjust the service to their needs as far as is practically possible, bearing in mind the sustainability of the MyCiTi service. Residents must please keep in mind that standing is a common experience of public transport the world over and that a seat during the peak-hour periods is the exception and not the rule. The MyCiTi buses are designed to accommodate standing passengers. I, therefore, want to appeal to our residents to change their mindset as operating the service with seated passengers only is unsustainable in the long-term,' said Herron.