The National Department of Transport put rail at the centre stage during this year’s October Transport Month campaign launch.
During the official launch of the 2022 October Transport Month campaign, Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula showcased the revitalisation, resumption and successes of the Rail Corridor Recovery Programme that was instituted by State-owned railway company the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) in April 2021.
PRASA executed the programme with the intention to recover train services and corridors following vandalism on rail passages such as Pretoria and Pienaarspoort, Pretoria to Kaalfontein, Leralla to Johannesburg, and Naledi to Johannesburg.
Since then, the Pretoria-Pienaarspoort line alone has undergone major reconstruction with the introduction of advanced signalling technology, modernised high-speed circuit breakers, and the use of aluminium wires to counter copper theft. This has led to a successful resumption of train services on the corridor.
Mbalula also showcased the integratedness of transport services in the Pretoria A train station precinct that covers other public transport modes in the form of busses and taxis and other services around the area.
Mbalulaoutlined the October Transport Month programme for the month and other plans and successes in the transport sector throughout the country. The Vala Zonke pothole eradication programme and road safety plans to reduce the carnage on South Africa’s roads will also be brought under sharp focus.
In order to get a first-hand experience of the recovered rail services, Mbalula boarded a train from Pienaaarspoort Station in Mamelodi en route to the Pretoria A Station in the CBD.
The launch involved a media event on October 3 where attendees joined the Minister at Pienaarspoort to board the trains. This was followed by a community and stakeholder engagement event at the Pretoria A station.