News Round-Up
BRT system given the go-ahead
Johannesburg’s bus rapid transit system has finally been given the go-ahead and will hopefully be up and running by the end of August. The BRT has been delayed due to threats by taxi bosses, and was put on hold until after the general elections on April 22. Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin announced on Thursday that “the city leading the process around the first phases of BRT must continue … today we want to provide the green light to proceed.” It’s predicted that by 2025 the BRT system will cover about 1400km across South Africa.
Reference: Mail & Guardian
Table Mountain climbs to the top
Table Mountain was ranked 29th in the New 7 Wonders of Nature campaign last week, but this week climbed all the way up to number 5 and is ahead of Mount Everest, K2 and Mount Kilimanjaro. In the second phase of the campaign, 261 qualified national and multinational nominees are now competing to make it to the top 77. “We are really excited that our campaign is capturing the imagination of the SA public. Now we need to sustain interest in order to keep our rankings high until July 7,” said Sabine Lehmann, CEO of Table Mountain Aerial Cableway. To vote for Table Mountain, visit www.votefortablemountain.com.
Reference: SA Good News
Green Goal action plan
Cape Town’s Green Goal action plan, consisting of 43 projects with specific targets, is determined to leave a positive environmental legacy after the 2010 Soccer World Cup. “The carbon footprint is going to be much higher than the previous world cup in Germany for various reasons, including the long distance flights that people from other countries need to take to South Africa,” said Green Goal manager Lorraine Gerrans. “The city’s R15-million project to channel the run-off water from Table Mountain to the Green Point common for irrigation has already started. The city also plans to set up split-bins in strategic areas to recover recyclable materials.”
Reference: Independent Online
Making Mandela Day a reality
An international campaign for Mandela Day has been initiated by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and related organisations. ANC Chief Whip Mathole Motshekga says that the ANC is committed to make Mandela Day a reality. Briefing the media at Parliament, Motshekga said Mandela’s values and his example of dedication to the service of humanity was “shining to people all over the world”. “It will be celebrated on the 18th of July each year and will give people in South Africa and all over the world the opportunity to do something good to help others,” said Motshekga.
Reference: News 24
