Johannesburg — SOUTH Africa will spend billions on a battle plan to bolster the country's transport system for the 2010 World Cup.

Cabinet has approved an action plan to prioritise 2010 transport demands in a bid to accommodate the 400000 foreign visitors expected in the country for the six-week tournament.

The plan is to be unveiled by Transport Minister Jeff Radebe at a transport indaba in Soweto today.

According to a Transport Department report, the plan "will be unlike anything ever experienced in South Africa before and will require planning and co-ordination beyond any transport management the country has ever faced".

The Sunday Times can today reveal that R3.7-billion will be spent building roads and bolstering the country's train system, which is being beefed up to form the "backbone" of South Africa's transport system.

Other details of the plan include:

•R3.5-billion to be spent over the next four years on recruiting an additional 6000 traffic cops.

•Harsher new traffic laws and the introduction of a merit and demerit system next year. It will be a points-based system and empower the authorities to remove licences when necessary.

•A three-year probation period for new drivers, and a review of drunk-driving and speeding laws.

•The removal of 600000 unroadworthy or unlicensed vehicles from the roads.

•Several new roads in eThekweni, Johannesburg and Nelson Mandela Bay, linking townships and inner cities to sporting precincts.

•Closer to the event, special lanes on some of the country's busiest highways, to cater for high-occupancy vehicles such as buses and taxis. Such a lane has already been established on the Ben Schoeman Highway (N1) between Tshwane and Johannesburg, and others to be introduced include those on the R21 between OR Tambo International Airport and the centre of Johannesburg, and on highway approaches to eThekweni and Cape Town.

•Closing schools and universities during the World Cup to ease traffic congestion;

•Allowing match ticket holders to use public transport free of charge to and from games;

•Asking employers to grant leave to employees during the period or let them work flexible hours to ease traffic congestion;

•Repairing 356 pedestrian walkways throughout the country at a cost of R520-million; and

•Completing at least 80% of the R7.7-billion taxi recapitalisation programme by the Cup in mid-2010.

Yesterday Radebe admitted that there were serious shortfalls in the country's public transport system.

"This is especially the case in passenger rail transport. We are at a strategic crossroads at the moment, that's why we have a recovery programme."

He said the focus of the action plan was to make the train system "the backbone" of public transport.

Traffic police were being told to move away from "revenue generation" -- or merely collecting fines -- to actually enforcing the rules of the road, he said.

Radebe emphasised that the programme was deadline-driven, with the department expecting everything to be in place by June 2009 when the Confederations Cup, a precursor to the World Cup, is played.

The plan makes provision for airports such as those at Upington, Mafikeng and Bhisho to be used as entry points to the country for scheduled international flights.

In addition, airports currently serving small commercial international flights -- such as Polokwane International Airport and Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport -- would be upgraded with new equipment and personnel.

Fifa requires at least 65000 hotel rooms for its delegation and the players during the tournament and, according to the report, almost all of them will travel into and around the country using the smaller airports.

Earlier this year, in a submission to Parliament's Transport committee, deputy director-general Mathabatha Mokonyama said at least 60 passenger trains, 2400 buses and 6000 minibus taxis would be required to cater for the World Cup.

He said at least 1500 luxury coaches were required for the tournament, but told Parliament that the country currently had only 400 such buses registered.

Chief executive for South African Tourism Moeketsi Mosola saidSouth Africa could explore the option of borrowing luxury buses from neighbouring countries.

"This is what Germany did as it did not have a sufficient number of coaches."

According to the report, by December the department will have finalised with Fifa the sequencing of matches according to an agreed clustering of venues, the starting times and transport and security requirements.

By the end of this year the department also wants to have in place a 2010 transport-planning framework, stadium-access reports and transport requirements for the expected Fifa officials, players and VIPs.