"The project planning is at an advanced stage, with a number of plans already in place for the next financial year," continues Krish Kumar, deputy city manager: treasury.

Building the network will cost an estimated R5bn over five years.

The four-phase project in South Africa’s second-biggest city will involve the purchase of 800 extra-long articulated buses serving three high-volume traffic corridors — from the Bridge City development 17km from the city centre, to the central business district; from Bridge City to Pinetown; and from Bridge City through the Cornubia housing project now being built.

The Cornubia project, being developed on 766ha of land in phases over 10-15 years, is expected to provide 20,000 homes to accommodate about 80,000 people. In terms of total land holdings: Cornubia North comprises 1 231 gross ha, of which 813ha are developable; Cornubia South: Tongaat Hulett owns 345ha of developable land; the city owns 369ha of developable land.

The first phase of the public transport network project involves widening and upgrading certain roads. The Department of Transport had provided R2,4bn for this purpose, with the city requiring R8,4bn in total to complete the phase, media reports said.

The network will include dedicated bus lanes, upgraded bicycle lanes, a bicycle rental system, park-and-ride facilities, rail stations upgraded by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa, new stations and bus terminals, and closed-circuit television coverage.

Construction work on the first phase is expected to start in March next year.

The transport network is one of a number of projects planned by the municipality to prioritise job creation. It hopes to create 12,000 Expanded Public Works Programme jobs, worth roughly R84,6m, in the financial year March 31 2013, while 35% of its infrastructure capital budget of R2,39bn over three years will be used to maximise labour opportunities.