…Grateful to African Alliance for developing town
BY DELISA THWALA
MBABANE– By 2025 Matsapha will be a big and better town, thanks to the currently developing plans.
Matsapha Town Clerk Lucky Lukhele announced today that by 2025 Matsapha will have a formal and big bus rank.
He was speaking during a live interview on Eswatini Broadcasting Services (EBIS).
He mentioned that, since Matsapha shopping complexes continued to increase, the local population will now benefit from a new retail centre that has been set up in the industrial hub and this will mean more cars and transport buses/kombis.
Worth noting is that, The Matsapha Link Retail Centre was officially opened by the Minister of Commerce Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo.
Matsapha Town Clerk Lucky Sukati said with the rise in the number of people who came to Matsapha for employment opportunities, efforts had been made to ensure that there was the provision of enough shopping complexes, malls and other essential services that were needed by residents of the town, and now they were considering a bus rank.
“Tenders for the bus rank are already out, we are building this bus rank for safety and seeing that Matsapha grows by the second,” he said.
Worth noting is that, to date, the town has a daytime population of approximately 35 000 people who work in various companies and industries located in the town and a nighttime population of approximately 20 000 people and these are people who call Matsapha their home.
He mentioned that with the addition of the retail centre, they were grateful that as a town they were edging closer to the realisation of diversifying the town whilst not hampering its true identity of being the industrial hub of the kingdom.
Sukati said Matsapha was an industrial hub and was characterised by the many industrial warehouses and firms that form part of the town.
“As per our slogan, which is The Kingdom’s Investment Hub, the town is expected to play an active leading role in creating employment opportunities for Emaswati through such developments,” he said.
Meanwhile, a constructor gave insight on the matter and said a lot constituted characteristics of a good bus rank and its design.
Melusi Lushaba said a well-designed and built bus shelter is an essential part of any urban transit system or employee shuttle program. He said a good shelter is low maintenance and is damage-resistant. In addition, an ideal bus shelter is the one that allows visibility, easy access to the bus and provides a comfortable atmosphere for bus riders. A well-designed, comfortable shelter can make waiting for a bus pleasant and even interesting.
“A good bus shelter should be made from sturdy, quality materials that are designed to last a long time. As well as withstanding the effects of the sun, wind and rain, the shelter should not easily rust, rot or corrode. By choosing high-quality components for a bus shelter, users can also feel safe, secure and protected when standing under it,” he said.
