‘Authorities must act to avoid gridlock’

Road Federation chief speaks out Kevin Mayhew THE SOUTH African Road Federation (SARF) has antecedents which stretch back over half a century. FTW’s Kevin Mayhew spoke to SARF executive director, Dr Malcolm Mitchell, who is a former deputy director-general of the South African National Department of Transport. What does SARF see as its fundamental role? Our primary role is the promotion of roads and the road sector for the economic and social advancement of all South Africans. We have always held that after education, roads are the second most important economic catalyst. What is the current focus? The dynamics of road management in this country are far too complicated and I believe SARF has a very important role to play in getting the three tiers of governmental road authorities, national, provincial and municipal, in the first instance, to talk to each other and then to formulate joint strategies in consultation with the private sector. Most countries only have two levels of road planning which makes things much simpler. One of our immediate goals is to promote the coordination of road planning in metropolitan areas where traffic congestion is a major problem and is already impacting on the performance of the economy. Another is skills development. We run courses on basic road engineering, project and road management. What areas is SARF working on to improve the road network? We are lobbying Government to ensure that the funds currently earmarked for transport infrastructure are spent correctly. We must avoid unbalanced spending on rail and must ensure that we have a road network that it is able to accommodate our current and projected GDP growth. There is a misconception that if people used public transport we wouldn’t need so many roads. Not true. Public transport already accounts for a 70% usage, more than most other countries and most of it is road-based. Another issue is the misallocation of funds. Roads are being built in rural areas where population and traffic densities are very low, whereas our major metros remain under-funded. Do you see the under-funding of metro roads as our most urgent road problem? Undoubtedly. It’s an area where we have a great deal of expertise and where we can add value. Take Gauteng for example. There has been a huge increase in the number of vehicles, and major hold-ups on the arterial routes occur daily. Action needs to be taken, and soon, if we are to avoid gridlock. The Gautrain will make very little difference, and while under construction, will make things a lot worse. Does SARF undertake or sponsor research? One of our immediate objectives is to establish where the most pressing road problems lie and this will take a national survey. We conducted a mini survey, ALARM (Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance), in 2005 when we sent a circular to the road authorities. Right now we need something far more comprehensive.