Arup South Africa has won the contract to prepare a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) master plan for ten of the key stations that are part of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) system being built in Addis Abeba.
The 34.24 km network, based on two initial lines, one running north-south
from Menelik Square to Kaliti and the other running east-west from Ayat to
Tor Hailoch is set for completion in January 2015, with 41 stations in all.
The network is designed to carry 15,000 passengers per hour per direction.
“We have been retained by the Ethiopian Railway Corporation (ERC) to illustrate what activities, uses and yield can be created around the new stations within a 400 meter radius,” says Nico Venter, leader of Integrated Urbanism at Arup SA.
In a statement sent to Addis Standard, Arup further said that within this walkable node it needs to assess if each place and loci can accommodate appropriate use and bulk development. This forms part of the regeneration of a 125-year-old city with over 3 million people. Arup will visualize these nodes and illustrate potential future development, culminating in a broad based bankable approach, cognizant of costs and the catalytic potential these nodes could have on the city.
“This is a typical African city and each precinct has its own unique requirements and sense of place,” the statement said, adding the framework must therefore look to short, medium and long-term approaches that allow for flexibility and that can change over time as the node develops and matures.
“We have been requested to provide an independent view, using a multi-disciplinary approach, within a tight schedule of five months. We look forward to this task, as an exciting step forward in the future of city making,” said Venter.
Arup is an independent firm of designers, planners, engineers and technical specialists that makes up the heart of the creative force of many of the world’s most prominent projects in the built environment and industry.
Cover Photo: Addis Standard
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