Source: 46 intersections in Harare’s CBD to get new traffic lights – herald
Municipal Correspondent
THE Harare City Council has rolled out the second phase of its traffic signal rehabilitation programme, targeting 46 intersections in the central business district (CBD) by the end of November.
There are 69 intersections with traffic lights in Harare’s CBD.
The programme, being implemented by the City of Harare and financed through parking revenue collected by City Parking, is expected to ease congestion and improve traffic flow in the CBD. City Parking is the company contracted by the council to manage municipal parking and collect parking fees, with part of the revenue now being channelled into the rehabilitation of traffic infrastructure.
City Parking spokesperson Mr Francis Mandaza said work had already started at several intersections and was progressing according to schedule.
“We have commenced phase two of our traffic signals rehabilitation programme, which is being led by the City of Harare and financed by parking revenue from City Parking,” he said.
“We have a target to do 46 intersections by the end of November and we are on schedule. We are hoping that we will be on target.”
The upgraded traffic lights are solar-powered, allowing them to remain operational during power cuts. They are also fitted with countdown timers designed to regulate the movement of vehicles, with each lane getting roughly one-and-a-half minutes to move before traffic on other approaches is released.
The rehabilitation is expected to provide relief to motorists who regularly encounter congestion in the CBD, particularly at busy intersections where malfunctioning or non-operational traffic signals can disrupt the movement of vehicles.
Mr Mandaza said the project demonstrated the practical benefits of parking revenue being invested back into the city.
“It is quite refreshing for residents to be seeing where the parking revenue is going in terms of this project,” he said.
“We are rehabilitating traffic lights at all the intersections in our CBD and this is going to improve traffic flow and ease congestion to drivers and make our city trafficable in general.”
The programme is also being complemented by the installation of cameras at intersections, which are expected to encourage motorists to comply with traffic regulations and improve road discipline.
Mr Mandaza, however, said improved infrastructure would have to be matched by responsible behaviour from motorists.
“But most importantly, let’s also not shy away from the issue of the behaviour of our drivers,” he said.
“It is upon drivers to make sure that we drive courteously and we give way to each other. We must also respect road signs and road rules.”
The rehabilitation works are being carried out mainly at night to minimise disruption to motorists and prevent additional congestion during peak periods.
This approach, Mr Mandaza added, was also allowing workers to complete the work more efficiently.
“We have chosen to operate during the night when traffic volumes are a bit low so that we don’t cause traffic jams in the CBD and traffic continues to flow in the afternoon,” he said.
“During the night, as you can see, there are low traffic volumes and there are no disturbances. Also, in terms of operational efficiency, we move faster during the night when there is low traffic.”
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