Mayor’s office moves to Sandton for Ecomobility Festival
SANDTON – The Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, Parks Tau, kicked off the Ecomobility Festival on 1 October in Sandton by announcing that his mayoral office has moved to the Sandton CBD for the duration of the festival.
He made this announcement at a press briefing about the festival that will run from 1 to 31 October.
“Sandton is under threat of becoming a giant parking lot,” said Tau. He added that one of the aims behind the festival was to reduce the use of private vehicles in the precinct by 43 percent. “Unfortunately there is no more space available in Sandton to make more roads.”
Tau said he cycled, took a bus and used the Gautrain to get to the press briefing in Sandton. “I, myself, have personally begun to change the way I move,” added Tau.
“I want Joburgers to follow our lead and take a bold step.”
The creative director of Ecomobility Festivals around the world, Konrad Otto-Zimmermann, also addressed the media at the briefing. He said, “Transport is a top priority for all the cities around the world. I can only congratulate the City of Johannesburg for taking on the Ecomobility Festival. We want to reclaim the streets for social activity.”
The CEO of Gautrain, Jack van der Merwe, and MMC for Transport, Christine Walters, were present at the briefing, while American actor, Danny Glover also made a surprise appearance in support of the festival.
Details: www.ecomobilityfestival.org
Join the Joburg North Local News WhatsApp group and get live news updates sent straight to your phone. Just send a WhatsApp message with your name and surname to 079 439 5345
