The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa’s (Prasa) efforts to resuscitate the doomed central line are reportedly yielding positive results.
The rail agency recently announced that some parts of the central line from Nyanga to Chris Hani and Kapteinsklip will be up and running at the end of July.
While the service has been completely run down around Cape Town, Prasa has successfully managed to recover certain lines. The northern and southern lines are partly operational, while the central line has been recovered until Nyanga.
Prasa acting head of department of marketing and Communication Zinobulali Mihi confirmed that the Nyanga, Philippi and Nolungile stations will start operating by the end of July. The work is being carried out in phases. Phase 1 was completed early last year, targeting Cape Town to Bellville and Nyanga. Phase 2 includes Nyanga to Chris Hani and Kapteinsklip. The recovery work on the line is currently focused on the reinstatement of the OverHead Traction Equipment (OHTE), Perway rehabilitation and station refurbishments.
“It is important to note that Phase 1 of the Central Line was completed in early 2023, where our service is currently operating from Cape Town to Bellville and Nyanga,” said Mihi.
The news has come as a welcome relief for local economic structures and vendors.
Livelihood
Gugulethu Development Forum secretary Vincent Domingo labelled the move as a “dream come through”.
He said they’ve been fighting for the trains to return. “We are happy to have trains back. We held numerous meetings with Prasa officials demanding the renovation of the train stations so that the trains could work again. It is going to be a huge relief for the train commuters. People will have a choice, either to use a taxi, bus or train,” said Domingo.
He said they wish to see the entire central line operating fully.
READ: The train stops here
Nosiphelele Mabandlela, who is a fruit vendor near Philippi railway station, said she cannot wait to see the trains running again to boost their businesses.
“There were a lot of informal businesses here before the trains stopped operating. There were many people who were using the trains and were buying from us. I was making a lot of money then,” said Mabandlela.
While R300 might seem like a small profit, Mabandlela said it made a huge difference for her and the entire household. She stated the run down of the rail service affected not only vendors but commuters across Cape Town.
“Taxis and buses are too expensive when you compare them to trains. People are struggling even to go around looking for odd jobs because they don’t have money,” she said.
Mabandlela called on the government to tighten the security in the trains when they return. “The way people are killed in our areas is scary. People are killed for nothing, and this thing of extortion is making it worse,” she said.
