The Democratic Alliance (DA) is urging national government to intervene and rescue the R4 billion Integrated Public Transport System (IPTS) in Nelson Mandela Bay, where 25 buses remain grounded, with not even one operational
I will write to the National Treasury and the national Department of Transport to request the secondment of a project manager and a financial manager to take over leadership of the failing IPTS. It is evident that the project has effectively collapsed under ANC-administrations and requires urgent intervention.
Today, I was joined by DA EC Provincial Chairperson, Yusuf Cassim MPL, and DA NMB Caucus Leader, Cllr Rano Kayser, in conducting an oversight inspection at the Cleary Park ITPS bus depot in Gqeberha. Our on-site inspection revealed many of the buses to be in a poor state.
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Over the coming months, our decisions on this R4 billion project will shape the future of the IPTS. It is unsustainable for government to continue funnelling hundreds of millions of rands into a system that is failing to deliver any meaningful service, essentially a bottomless pit.
In the 2022/23 financial year, when a DA coalition governed the metro, the IPTS transported a record number of more than 1,066 million passengers.
After the DA and its coalition partners were removed from government in May 2023 the IPTS deteriorated under the successive leadership of former NA Mayor Gary van Niekerk and his Roads and Transport portfolio head Bradley Murray of the Patriotic Alliance, and later under ANC Mayor Babalwa Lobishe and her Roads and Transport MMC Yolisa Pali-Jongilanga.
Following the takeover of the project by the Patriotic Alliance and Murray, passenger numbers fell drastically, with only 104 677 commuters transported during the 2023/24 financial year, a massive 90% decrease compared to the previous financial year.
Fare revenue also plummeted to just R768 000, marking a 91% drop from the 2022/23 financial year under the DA-led coalition.
Where the DA governs, public transport delivers.
In the 2023/24 financial year, the City of Cape Town’s MyCiTi bus service transported over 19,3 million passengers.
Meanwhile, in the DA-governed George Municipality, the GO GEORGE bus system conducted 5,91 million passenger trips during the same period.
With all IPTS buses currently off the road in the metro, thousands of commuters are stranded without access to transport.
After the next local government elections and under a DA majority government, the IPTS project will get back on track so that it can start to provide much needed transportation services to the residents of the metro.
The people of Nelson Mandela deserve affordable and safe transport, and we will fight to make this a reality. Together we can get Nelson Mandela Bay working again.