Plans to turn Queen Victoria Street into a one-way street

The City of Cape Town has invited residents to comment on it’s proposal to convert Queen Victoria Street in the Cape Town Central Business District (CBD) into a one-way street.

The municipality said that over the years, it has received numerous complaints about congestion along Queen Victoria Street, which runs past the Western Cape High Court, the South African Museum, Planetarium, and Company Gardens.

The City invited residents to comment on a proposal to convert Queen Victoria Street into a one-way street, in the direction of Wale Street towards Orange Street.

‘’Our traffic engineers have done preliminary investigations and considered various solutions. The most feasible and easy to implement, is the proposal to turn Queen Victoria Street into a one-way, from Wale Street all the way towards the mountain where it intersects with Orange Street. Traffic flow will be improved, we will see fewer accidents as there won’t be conflict between vehicles from different directions, and pedestrians will be safer given that they will only need to negotiate traffic coming from one direction,’’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Transport, Felicity Purchase.

 

The choice of direction for the proposed one-way street is based on the following:

·        Bus stops are located on the left-hand side of Queen Victoria Street when travelling towards Orange Street. Thus, by turning it into a one-way street, pedestrian safety will be improved as commuters will have near-side boarding and alighting facilities, and would not need to cross the busy street

·        Road safety will be improved as traffic along Orange Street heading towards Buitengracht will not be permitted to turn right into Queen Victoria Street

 ‘’We have also investigated the possible impact this proposal may have on signalised intersections in the area, taking diverted traffic into account. From our analysis the additional traffic can be accommodated with changes to the timing of signals along the affected routes,’’ added Alderman Purchase.’’

 Comments, recommendations, and input on the proposal to turn Queen Victoria Street into a one-way street can be submitted:

·        Online: www.capetown.gov.za/haveyoursay

·        By email: Public.Participation@capetown.gov.za

·        By hand: Good Hope Subcouncil Administration; 11th Floor, 44 Wale Street, Cape Town

 

The closing date for submissions is 11 March 2021.

 

Done By: Mitchum George