Cycling and construction are clearly on the agenda. This is important for various reasons, including the fact that as energy costs increase, so is pedal power is coming to the fore; so extrapolating further: this is something increasingly important for city fathers and facility managers to consider going forward. But we digress...

The big Construction Indaba was not as dull as it sounds. With all the construction going on around the city of Durban, infrastructure projects, commercial and retail space and housing development it makes sense to see who’s who in the greater scheme of things. The purpose of hosting this event was for the Municipality to address the issues that were revealed by the Construction Research that the Municipality had conducted in 2008.

The research indicated skills shortages, inadequate access to capital and poor availability to information as the most pertinent matters affecting the accomplishmentsof emerging businesses in theCity’s construction industry.

The Construction Indaba was aimed at empowering emerging and established contractors to become self-sustainable and as well as help them through the industry’s most common difficulties impacting negatively on business growth and sustainability.

The result was much Indaba aboutaccess to funding, BBBEE, Training Facilities, Supply Chain Management as well as legal matters. The difficulties noted in the Indaba revolved principally around access to finance and the accessibility of business opportunities. There seems to be a satisfaction all around that voices are being heard and expression was healthy and constructive.

The municipality plans to host workshops on the raised issues in partnership with financial institutions in an attempt to bring resolution. Furthermore the Municipality is planning to host more training sessions to assist delegates with skills development. The Indaba will be an annual event at the request of the participants.

And just when you thought it was unsafe …. Enter the City's “non-motorised transport plans”, which will eventually link Durban to areas such as Umlazi, Kwamashu and Umhlanga.

But there’s a bump in the road. A cycle lane across the Ellis Brown Viaduct of the M4 Northern Freeway bridge has been under construction for several months, resulting in a nasty traffic snarl up withvarious lanes, and at one stage the entire highway, being shut at times whilst the new cycle lane was under construction.

Alas the wheels of bureaucracy grind slowly. The City is still waiting for a “final record of decision from the provincial department of environmental affairs for the construction of the ramps that will lead on to and off the bridge.” Huh? This means that the bridge section of the cycle route may not be opened until ramps are created at each end. Apparently we have to wait for May before permission is granted.

The whole route ranges from the Blue Lagoon to Riverside Road. Cyclist are currently stopping at the lane, which has been cordoned off by a concrete post, and tentatively cycling on the road past traffic to get to the other side. Not an ideal situation.

On a positive note, Greg Albert, chairman and secretary of the Cyclesphere Cycling Club in Morningside, said that the bridge looks amazing. "We have seen that it has been completed and it's looking great; we can't wait for it to open," said Albert to the Independent on Sunday. He said once the bridge was opened to cyclists, it would encourage more social cyclists and families.

Ultimately the cycle lane should end at the Bird Park at this stage. Other cycle lanes include those extending along the beachfront and around other important city attractions. Most of these tracks had been established in time for the Cop17 conference and had cost the city upward of R6 million. Interestingly enough the City contributed about 30% to the budget of the tracks with the rest coming from international donors: the German government and the UN Industrial Development Organisation

Other possible cycling routes under discussion include a 2km pathway to allow pupils to cycle from Albert Park to schoolsin the Addington area. Looking into the future, the city intends  to make option to commuters  to cycle or walk to work in the CBD by offering“park and pedal” districts. Similarly the new rapid bus and train points will be a focus for future “park and pedal” facilities.

There’s always something positive and constructive going on in the City of Durban.

Perhaps it's time for Joburg to consider how to better and safely utilise some of the amazing linear park/river and other opportunities in facilitating cycle movement throughout the city.