Friday, March 29, 2024

LCC kicks off installation of new traffic lights in Lusaka

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The Lusaka City Council (LCC) has commenced the installation of new traffic lights in Lusaka at a cost of K1.5 billion.

Speaking in an interview, LCC Public Relations Officer Henry Kapata said works have commenced at three junctions, namely Kamloops-Alick Nkatha , Lumumba-Ben Bella and Malila-Lumumba road junctions.

Mr. Kapata said the Council has contracted Aeradeo Zambia Limited to install the light emitting diodes which have a life span of ten years with financial support from the National Road Fund Agency and the Road Development Agency.

He said works have started at Kamloops-Alick Nkata junction and are expected to be commissioned in seven days while the rest of the works at other junctions will be completed by 14th June, this year.

He added that the LCC is seriously considering Solar system as an alternative source of energy for street lights to avoid inconveniences arising from ZESCO power cuts and shortages.

Meanwhile, the LCC has called on the Road Traffic Commission to mount constant patrols in the central business area to address problems of inadequate parking space and traffic jams.

Mr. Kapata said unregistered taxis and illegal car dealers have continued to contribute to increased traffic jams and inadequate parking space especially along Cairo Road.

He appealed to the business community to partner with the local authority in securing more cramps as the council is considering stiffer punishments for careless parking through the introduction of by laws.

31 COMMENTS

  1. Good but the focus for Lusaka alone is not good. Lopsided development in Zambia is not good for Zambia. We welcome this development but it should be uniform that is why people flock to Lusaka increasing crime because that is where you see everything happening.

  2. Good point #1. Development should be nationally balanced to avoid sub city situations like on the copperbelt.

  3. I totally agree with you. This government has a pro – Lusaka and even pro – Ndola bias. Have you noticed how the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Felix Mutati and his Permanent Secretary, Davidson Chilipamushi, are always talking about the need to revive industry in Ndola but never say anything about reviving the economic fortunes of other Copperbelt towns like Chingola, Kitwe, Luanshya and Mufulira?

  4. Hei!I was in Luanshya,brothers and sisters the place is in disagreeable mixture.You hardly can see the approaching vehicle due to pot holes.These potholes are so deep that when a light truck goes into you only see a person standing at the back.

  5. To much exaggeration Wanyanya !!! Are you sure there is such a pothole/s in Lya? Which road did you drive on?

  6. #1 HAS POINTS AND IF THEY CAN DISTRIBUTE THE SAME DEVELOPMENTS TO OTHER CITIES THIS WILL BE GREAT. I HAVE A QUESTION, WHY IT TOOK THEM CENTURIES TO HAVE NEW STREET LIGHT. ZAMBIA IS THE MESSED UP PLACE TO LIVE IN

  7. #3 I am not sure what the government’s motive is, but there is a good economic reason for concentrating businesses in one area or town. Businesses feed off each other. They are interdependent and swap services and goods. For instance, any car manufacturer or supplier of car parts would do better to locate in Ndola because already there are related industries there. Kaunda’s policy of locating factories like KGP, Mansa batteries, Livingstone Motor Assembler, etc on their own in places where the supply chains were non-existent did not make economic sense. That’s why today KGP lies dormant as a monument to an era of economic mismanagement.

  8. Good job LCC you should also look at sign posts, road names and add more traffic lights since roads are coming up country wide.

  9. There is no traffic in Ndola, hence only two sets of traffic lights. Much as I love the Belt, the Berg will always be the place to be 😀

  10. Why should the govt only focus on Lusaka…..when we have 9 other provinces that should benefit as well???

  11. LCC should be commended for taking this move. I’m sure the government allocates funds for all infrastructure in the country and it’s up to the provincial councils to come up with proposals on how they want to use the funds. I’m sure if there is need to repair traffic lights in Ndola or Chipata then the councils should be held responsible for not pushing government to release the funds?

  12. #11, Your point is very logical. It is time we put our councilors to task especially those that are not following operational guidelines and are unable to follow-up fund allocations meant for spending on infrastructure upkeep and services. In order to police this one what we must do is attend council meetings to listen in to the progress reports then bring to their attention those areas of common concern that ought to be looked into. I am sure that if many people begin to show up at these neetings, the councilors will become proactive.

  13. i think the government should is fully justified in concentrating on lusaka (and livingstone). Lusaka is the capital people. Tourists and business men fly into lusaka.. so would you rather they fly into a dump or a great city?

    congratulations to LCC.. its about time other councils get off their asses.

  14. #11& 12 i agree with you. friends, Lusaka city council cannot plan for other towns or provinces. let other councils solicit funds for projects in their areas. look at the luapula concillors who are busy quarreling over the naming of the chembe bridge instead of progressive developmental debates which will benefits the local people.

  15. LCC is finally doing something may be other councils will get off there asses and implement some ideas so they can develope there own areas of course with the help of the gov too. its the council’s job to look after the local area, because they represent the gov in power.

  16. Good initiative LCC. But do not relax because those disposible robots alone won’t solve traffic congestion. We need more overhead roods.And also help rural councillors on how access funding

  17. The best way forward is to devolve power to provinces in real terms. Lusaka must only be the co-ordinating centre for development of all provinces. Each provincial minister should be responsible for all development issues in their provinces. This means having departments in their provinces with adequate and qualified staff to carry out the various development tasks in their provinces. This model is based on the S. African one, except that they have premiers for their provinces. In our case, all HODs in each province would report to their provincial minister.

  18. There is no need to announce that you are installing traffic lights. This is your responsibility. You want to put butter on our faces that you are working. I stay outside zambia and I have never seen the council here anouncing that they have started installing traffic lights. You just have to do it.

  19. More serious efforts for planning and enforcement of who builds what and what standards/quality and where are required to correct the mess we made of our towns. This is a joke!! No wonder our towns look like jokes and we are being made fun of as a country. There is a big Shanty compound in Lilongwe and its filthiest/dirtiest part is called Zambia and another pathetic shanty in Pretoria called Zambia. Thats how infamous we have become of our filthy towns. “Marshal plan” required to turn arround local councils, housing and infrastructure.

  20. Lawyers are not the best suited profession to run councils in dire need of direction/vision and planning and massive constrution. Lets try economists and engineers. Overhaul the system

  21. #18 spot on the Monk. In fact, it is embarrasing to even anounce the amounts of money involved in the installation of traffic lights. We install traffic lights on construction sites within a day, at relatively low costs. Installation of new generation traffic lights that work on sensors and powered by renewable energy sources; say solar, is even faster, because all the componets are factory produced, all you do is assemble them and test them. Typical Zambia, we want praise for teh very job we are paid for.

  22. Traffic lights in Zambia are ignored especially at night, which poses a very big danger to whoever may not be aware of this tendency. Question, who is doing to see to it that those traffic lights are respected? at night people just drive thru red lights for fear of being robbed of their cars.

  23. “That’s why today KGP lies dormant as a monument to an era of economic mismanagement.”
    I will never pass by it on the road now without thinking of this. Very funny.

  24. There is nothing wrong in putting lights on the streets of LSk because they have more traffic than any other town. I just recommend that they truly look into the good and proper function of those robots. I recommend that they improve on how they are going to keep stead supply of energy and not entirely depend on ZESCO. Solar is the answer. Its time we used the free energy and less expensive resource.

  25. I wonder why installing street lights should be an issue when in the real sense these should have been installed when the road was being done.In Zambia such developments seem to look like this is an added responsibility of the city council when this is infact their primary role…
    Just look around in most countries in Africa street lights are a way of beautifying their cities and it also helps minimise accidents.Last week i was passing thru Lusaka at night it is a sorry sight these Mwenyes cannot add even 1 bulb to light up a shop.Lighting adds beauty to towns(cities)…

  26. #7, you are really dull. I never thought we could still have such dull and sleepy Zambians. Listen to what sensible people are saying. Kaundas’ mansa battries, l/stone motor assembly, etc failed because of the same one sided development mentality, plus stealing, wrong economic policies to backup those super structures. Ask those who ve worked in Botswana, they will tell u that the govt there forced you to buy a car from Botswana car dealers and not from anywhere elae. Similar thing should have happened in Zambia where it should have been a policy for every zambian to buy from L/stone car production. To set a wrong eg, ministers bought very expensive cars from abroad. Do think if govt…

  27. …had instructed all parastals, all govt depts, any business in zambia as well as individuals to buy Zambia’s cars, L/Stone motor assembly would have collapsed? Think b4 u put your empty arguments on display. Mansa battries is a similar thing. The same thing extends to Zambia OK, Mwaiseni, and ZCBC super markets. Do you think this super markets would fail to sell a vegetable? Its the wrong economic policies that fail them. Having said that I wish a group Zns would re-establish these supermarkets to compete with the so called shoprites in a new economic fashion.#s:1,2,3,4,6,8,10,16,17,18,etc, HATS OFF TO YOU.

  28. By the way dont tell people what u gonna do LCC. Unless u are also prepared to show us the breakdown of how u used the money. It ur responsibility to make sure traffic lights, street lamps, street names, proper (gazetted) and lighted bust stops that use solar power are installed. Thats whats happening in most cities of the world. By the way solar powered street systems have a lot of advantages: no 1 needs to switch them off/on, they ll sense light n darkness n behave accordingly. It serves hydro energy, its enviromentally friendly-no green gas produced, cheaper to maintain, they will increase employment opportunities. +ses are endless.

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