No more MyCiTi buses on uphill at Hospital Bend

MyCiTi buses travelling towards the Cape Town Civic Centre station on the N2 inbound at Hospital Bend will follow a new route from this week.

This after the City assessed the impact of slow-moving MyCiTi buses on that section of road.

Inbound buses will now exit the N2 towards the M5 Black River Parkway, travel along the M5 and take the off-ramp onto the N1/FW de Klerk Boulevard.

Buses will travel along FW de Klerk Boulevard, take the off-ramp onto Christiaan Barnard Street and turn right onto Hertzog Boulevard at the Civic Centre station.

The new route will be followed every day, including Sundays and public holidays.

The service schedules will be adjusted accordingly, once the new inbound route alignment has been operational for a few days and teething problems addressed.

However, the outbound MyCiTi buses travelling from the Civic Centre station towards Khayelitsha and Mitchell’s Plain will still follow the normal N2 express route to their destinations.

Mayoral committee member for urban mobility Rob Quintas said the N2 express service was one of the most popular MyCiTi routes, and the buses travelling to and from Mitchell’s Plain and Khayelitsha to the Civic Centre station were usually full, meaning they often tackled the steep Hospital Bend gradient at low speeds, adding to congestion in morning peak traffic.

“The new route alignment for the inbound buses may add additional travelling time for commuters using the N2 express service; however, this is a safer and more cost-effective alternative going forward,” he said.

As was the case with all route changes, it would take a while for the new route alignment to settle in, and for commuters to adjust, he said.

“That said, the vehicle operating company operating the N2 express service has engaged commuters and drivers to alert them to the upcoming change.

“We have deviated buses along this route in the past when we had incidents along the N2 inbound, and I trust it will not take too long for all to get used to the new route.

“We will monitor the impact of the change continuously and make further adjustments if needed.”

For more information or for bus times, commuters can use the MyCiTi website or app or call the Transport Information Centre at 0860 65 64 63.