Media Release
The GO!Durban Foot Fuelling Station at this year’s
Sustainable Living Expo
August 14 – 16, 2015, Durban Exhibition Centre
This year, GO!Durban, the eThekwini Municipality’s new integrated rapid public transport network, which is currently under construction, will present visitors to the Sustainable Living Expo, with an opportunity to experience the world’s first Foot Fuelling Station.
The fuelling station, is a place where the avid walkers and riders of Durban’s streets can go to fuel their feet. Here visitors will be able to enjoy foot rubs, reflexology, shoe shining and cleaning, and an opportunity to refresh themselves while imbibing in the exciting information about the City’s vision for public transport in GO!Durban and how it adds to creating a more liveable, caring and sustainable environment for all.
As part of GO!Durban, much planning has gone into the creation of non-motorised transport networks which includes bicycle lanes, walkways and bridges for pedestrians for commuter and recreational purposes, which are being developed at the same time as the integrated rapid transport network. This will provide a safer, more efficient, reliable and cost-effective public transport network, which will reduce the need for people to rely on vehicles, and therefore propel the reduction of vehicles on the roads.
“We are currently constructing a dedicated bus lane from Bridge City to Pinetown as part of the first route to be developed in the public transport network which covers the entire municipality.” explains Thami Manyathi, Head of the eThekwini Transport Authority. “This new route will cut down travel time from Bridge City to Pinetown by half. Ultimately, its efficiency and reliability with appealing security and cleanliness will hopefully reduce the number of people using their own cars and opting to use public transport instead. With fewer cars on the road there will be more space for walking and cycling lanes. With more people riding and cycling and fewer cars on the road, our carbon footprint will decrease in the long run. A greater walking and cycling culture will encourage healthier, active citizens, and a more enriched culture of tourism, all adding to the future sustainability of the City. We have already seen how effective the various cycling and pedestrian walkways in the City have been, including the infrastructure already in place from uShaka to Durban North and from uShaka to Albert Park.”
The eThekwini Municipality will be implementing bicycle workshops in 2016 and 2017 as well as building new parks to give the public more space to learn to cycle. More information about these initiatives will be available at the Expo.
Durban citizens are invited to “fuel their feet” as a forward looking theme that aims for a time when people rely more on their feet as a mode of transportation encouraged by the holistic approach of GO!Durban, and find out more about this exciting project at the GO!Durban stand at eThekwini Municipality’s Sustainable Living Expo, which showcases the myriad ways in which we as citizens can work together towards a more sustainable future.
The Expo takes place at the Durban Exhibition Centre from Friday, August 14 to Sunday, August 16 from 9am to 5pm. Entrance is free and all are welcome.
For more information on GO!Durban go to www.godurban.co.za or for the Sustainable Living Expo go to www.durban.gov.za
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Sharlene Versfeld
Versfeld & Associates
Public Relations and Communications
Mobile: +27 (0) 83 326 3235
Tel: +27 (0) 31 811 5628
Post: P O Box 30547, Mayville, 4058
Email: sharlene@versfeld.co.za
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