The delay in the reopening of Cape Town’s Central Line will top the agenda at a meeting between the Western Cape government and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa), said newly-appointed MEC for Mobility, Ricardo Mackenzie.
The meeting is scheduled for this Friday.
Despite an earlier promise by outgoing Minister of Transport, Fikile Mbalula that the line, the busiest in the Western Cape and a lucrative one for Metrorail, will be fully functional by the end of July last year, thousands of commuters are still stranded.
A large portion of the railway line, had been inactive since 2019 owing to vandalism, cable theft and land invasion at several stations, Weekend Argus previously reported.
The situation was exacerbated by shack dwellers illegally occupying the line.
“We want to work with Prasa to get the central line up and running urgently,” Mackenzie told Weekend Argus.
“Commuters on the Cape Flats (are) eagerly awaiting this line to open and others to function properly ... the Western Cape government continues to call on national government to fast track the devolution of rail as a priority, as per the cabinet-approved White Paper on national rail policy.”
This, he said, will allow for substantially improved governance and management of rail, including stronger security and full protection of the rail network to prevent criminal damage and destruction of rail assets.
"We hope this meeting with Prasa will help commuters extend their choice on public transport.“
In the meantime, Prasa on Wednesday said two people died in an accident at its Salt River depot in the Western Cape on Monday.
The duo was testing refurbished train carriages when they perished, Prasa said.
The relevant authorities have been informed of the incident and an investigation is currently under way.
Weekend Argus