Hot on the heels of its larger northern neighbour, Johannesburg OR Tambo International Airport and its aerotropolis/aerocity plans, Bloemfontein's Bram Fischer International Airport is now set to launch its own bid for an aerocity.
According to Engineering News, the Airports Company South Africa (ACSA), has outlined its plans for Bram Fischer International, located in Mangaung municipality, the Free State's economic hub. The aerocity design will fall under South Africa's national strategic infrastructure project (SIP), SIP 2, the Durban–Free–State-Gauteng logistics and industrial corridor – which is being overseen by the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Committee.The proposed airport precinct, to the south of the airport entrance, will be a multibillion-rand infrastructure and property development, and will be the biggest project yet for Mangaung. While construction and usage of the facility is expected to be a boon for the local population, added infrastructural investment will come in the form of a new solar park, which will provide clean energy for the project and surrounding environs once it comes on line.
Phase 1, which covers 700ha of land on the southern side of the N8 between Bloemfontein and Thaba Nchu, will require 5'100t of cement, 130'000sqm of stone; 17'280m³ of tar will be used to construct 72km of roads; 160km of roadside curbing will be constructed; and 32km of water pipes, as well as 24km of stormwater pipes, will be laid. Details of Phase 2 will be released in three to four years’ time.
The total development will cover 2'000ha.
The project aims to reposition Mangaung economically and financially. The first phase is set to create 11'000 jobs and the aerocity will bring Thaba Nchu and Botshabelo closer to Bloemfontein.