as CAN 2024 approaches, the fear of major traffic jams

2023-12-05 11:58:09

From our correspondent in Abidjan – Hundreds of kilometers of roads have been built ahead of the African Cup of Nations (CAN), which is due to take place in Ivory Coast from January 13 to February 11, 2024. But in Abidjan, where life is d Ordinarily punctuated by spectacular traffic jams, the chaotic traffic situation during test matches raises fears that traffic jams will spoil the football celebration.

Published on : 05/12/2023 – 12:58

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“The Ebimpé stadium is a nightmare,” summarizes Thomas before recounting the evening when he wanted to attend the friendly match between Ivory Coast and Mali in September. That day, the stadium was flooded following heavy rain and the match had to be stopped before the end, creating a small scandal in the country. But Thomas didn’t see all this: following more than 3.5 hours in traffic for a 35 km journey, he gave up on reaching the stadium and turned around.

The cause, according to Cocan, the CAN 2024 organizing committee: the absence of a dedicated lane to allow the arrival of the teams and the official procession would have required completely blocking traffic for almost an hour, creating this chaotic situation. The problem has reportedly since been resolved. The organization, in collaboration with the Ivorian authorities, ensures that it has adapted. Park and ride facilities and buses have been set up to facilitate public transport to the stadium.

Four kilometers walk to reach the stadium

Insufficient measures, judge Sidiby Gbazie. This football fan posted a long testimony on social networks where he says that following hours of traffic jams, he had to walk 4 km to attend the Ivory Coast – Seychelles meeting on November 17. He writes that he failed to get on one of the buses stormed by the crowd of young supporters.

Simon Nobou, vice-president of the Cocan logistics and transport commission, recognizes this: traffic jams are “a subject of major concern” both for the organizing committee and for the Ivorian authorities. Several meetings were organized on this subject with the ministries concerned and the Prime Minister.

Beyond the traffic jams, President Alassane Ouattara seems to have made the smooth running of the CAN a personal matter. It’s difficult, moreover, not to see in the reshuffle of October a sign that he wants a government team focused as much as possible on the organization of the competition. He then renewed his confidence in the majority of his ministers but dismissed his Minister of Sports. He appoints a new Prime Minister, Robert Beugré Mambé, to whom this portfolio is assigned. This civil engineer is particularly known for having successfully organized the Francophonie Games in 2017.

“There are still adjustments to be made, but we will get there, I am convinced,” argues Simon Nobou. To limit the problem, the organizing committee encourages spectators to favor carpooling and public transport. He also says he is counting on the delivery of lane Y4 to relieve traffic congestion. The Abidjan ring road, still under construction, should be completed by December 10.

The puzzle of traffic plans

Another headache that the stakeholders are working on: the implementation of traffic plans which allow both players and spectators to arrive in time to see the match, and for residents to continue to circulate in the city. For the moment, these plans have been defined for all host cities except Abidjan. The Minister of Transport has given instructions to close as few lanes as possible to traffic, but it seems complicated to completely avoid this.

During the Ivory Coast – South Africa match on October 17, the closure of the Lagoon Boulevard, an important artery of the capital, to allow the official convoy to go to the Houphouët-Boigny stadium, in downtown Abidjan, immobilized a good part of the south of the city. The police finally relaxed the measures during the evening.

The drivers are “very afraid for the CAN”

Abdul Affi, driver of Yango – a VTC company with a strong presence in Ivory Coast – still remembers it. That evening, he stopped working six hours earlier than planned because of traffic jams. “The drivers, we are all very afraid for the CAN,” explains the one who plans to rent his vehicle for the duration of the competition. He also mentions the work which has multiplied throughout the city to renovate roads or build new bridges and interchanges, and which slows down traffic everywhere. “Abidjan is under construction, I don’t see how they might finish everything in time,” he says with alarm.

The shortfall is real for transport professionals. Isaak Diomandé, coordinator of the Bingerville commune of the Maison des Transporteurs de Côte d’Ivoire union, explains to us that while the competition will most likely have a positive impact for goods transporters, the situation is different for those who transport people. He estimates that the “gbaka”, these minibuses which are paid according to the number of people transported, might lose a significant part of their turnover during the CAN due to traffic jams. “If a gbaka, who normally makes his round trip eight times a day, only makes 4 or 5, that’s a lot of money lost for the drivers.”

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