Source: Southern Suburbs Tatler https://tinyurl.com/55h7za4r
Construction of the new MyCiTi bus station in Claremont is steadily taking shape, with the City confirming that 583 concrete piles forming the foundation have now been completed.
Eight months after the site handover, the City’s urban mobility directorate says the project is progressing well, with piling work finished and teams now capping foundations and beginning concrete casting for lifts, stairwells and columns on the ground floor.
The old bus terminus along Claremont Boulevard, between Hawthorne Road and Newry Street, has been demolished to make way for the new station, which is located within walking distance of Claremont railway station and the minibus-taxi facility in Ralph Street.
Once complete, the facility will not only serve MyCiTi buses, but will also accommodate the Golden Arrow Bus Service (GABS) and the University of Cape Town (UCT) shuttle service, creating a key public transport interchange in the area.
Mayoral committee member for urban mobility, Rob Quintas, said the project reflects long-term planning aimed at improving how residents move through the city.
“Once the MyCiTi station in Claremont is operational, this precinct will be one of Cape Town’s most connected and integrated transport hubs.”
Quintas said commuters will have access to five different public transport options within a 120-metre footprint, making transfers between services far easier.
“Commuters will have access to MyCiTi, Golden Arrow Bus Service, the UCT shuttle, passenger rail and minibus taxis. This is the result of deliberate, integrated planning, and it will change the daily experience of everyone who moves through Claremont.”
He added that the aim is to make movement between transport modes more efficient and convenient for commuters travelling between areas such as the metro-south east, Wynberg and Cape Town.
“Transferring between different public transport modes will be easy and efficient, whether heading to the metro south-east along the MyCiTi trunk route or on to Cape Town by train, taxi or bus,” Quintas said.
He said the new station forms part of the second phase of the MyCiTi bus expansion, which will deliver scheduled, affordable and reliable public transport to commuters travelling between the metro-south east and Claremont.
“Once operational, the second phase of the MyCiTi bus service will provide scheduled, safe, affordable and dignified public transport for commuters,” Quintas said.
The station has also been designed as a future mixed-use development site, with the structure able to support development of up to around ten storeys above the transport facility.
According to the City, the design forms part of a broader transit-oriented development approach aimed at unlocking investment while improving public transport access.
The station will include green building features such as energy-efficient lighting, solar photovoltaic systems, water-saving fittings, indigenous landscaping and recycled construction materials.
Environmental measures are also being implemented on site, including the separation and recycling of construction waste, the reuse of excavated material where possible, and efforts to reduce dust and carbon emissions through local sourcing of materials.
Existing infrastructure is also being reused where possible, including the refurbishment of shelter structures and the repurposing of paving and CCTV equipment at other City facilities.
If all goes according to plan, Quintas said the Claremont MyCiTi station is expected to be operational by March 2028.
The construction of the new MyCiTi bus station in Claremont is taking shape, with the installation of 583 concrete piles forming the foundation now complete. The project forms part of the MyCiTi bus service expansion that will connect Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha with Claremont and Wynberg. (Image: Supplied)