According to a briefing document issued by the Department of Transport (DoT), the rail freight system is “fraught with serious performance challenges”.  The most important cause is “historical under-investment in infrastructure, rolling stock and operating equipment”.  In consequence, the railway is unable to meet current demand.

Transnet has embarked on “massive” infrastructure and operational investments to improve service levels. In the next five years, it will invest about R93.4bn in ports, rail and pipeline infrastructure and operations.  Over the past five years – between 2005/06 and 2009/10 – R75.3bn has gone into these areas.

In Cronin’s words, maintenance of South Africa’s road network poses a “major challenge”, with the main problem tending to occur “at a provincial and municipal level.” There are a number of reasons for this, including under-funding of as much as R60bn.

“That’s steep, and as you fall back from one year to another, the condition of the roads gets worse and they deteriorate quite rapidly.”

9 lots comprising 173 wagons and 1 coach were closed (either no bids received or reserve price not reached).

The company explains that the route was never a paying proposition and that economic reasons led to its withdrawal. The need to use diesel power was a very expensive factor.

[ It is understood from train staff that the condition of the track in some places leaves much to be desired.  - editor

The Gauteng government and the Bombela Concession Company, responsible for building and operating the Gautrain line, have been negotiating for several months over the feasibility of accelerating phase one of the project – the Sandton-OR Tambo branch. In terms of the originally agreed schedule, trains were only required to start operating at the end of June.

Should Gautrain’s phase one be operational for the World Cup, it will cost around R100 a ticket, van der Merwe says. Ticket prices are envisaged as being cheaper than running a car, but more expensive than existing public transport. The airport trains are to be more luxurious and spacious than those that will start running between Johannesburg and Pretoria in 2011.

SAPPI supports the line in principle, but it is understood that service delivery has been poor, added to which the cost of moving timber by rail is now higher than road transport – and slower. On the other side of Pietermaritzburg, while the Greytown-Kranskop branch is still operating, there have been similar complaints about service and cost. The possibility of closure within six months seems not unlikely.

Due to the tight schedule, testing and commissioning requirements are very demanding. Noise levels are being evaluated to ensure that prescribed limits are not exceeded. Train hooting is being minimised during the night and early hours to avoid any unnecessary disturbance.

Sandton Station is underground beneath Rivonia Road, between West Street and Fifth Avenue. It will border the Sandton Library and Nelson Mandela Square. At Sandton, passengers will be able to choose between the airport and commuter services.

Travellers whose journeys originate at other stations will need to change platforms in order to use the airport service. It will be possible to do this without having to leave the station or pass through ticket gates in the station concourse.

The Gauteng government and the Bombela Concession Company, responsible for building and operating the Gautrain line, have been negotiating for several months over the feasibility of accelerating phase one of the project – the Sandton-OR Tambo branch. In terms of the originally agreed schedule, trains were only required to start operating at the end of June.

Should Gautrain’s phase one be operational for the World Cup, it will cost around R100 a ticket, van der Merwe says. Ticket prices are envisaged as being cheaper than running a car, but more expensive than existing public transport. The airport trains are to be more luxurious and spacious than those that will start running between Johannesburg and Pretoria in 2011.

Botash produces chemical grade salt and salt for human consumption as a by-product of ash, the magazine explains.

“Mookodi said that Botswana’s salt industry had been doing very well the last couple of years and predicted that the trend would continue going into the future.”

Sheltam, a South African company, owns 35% of RVR, holder of a 25-year concession to operate the railway linking Kenya’s Indian Ocean port of Mombasa with the rest of the country as well as Uganda and its capital, Kampala. Effectively, Citadel Capital now holds 17.5% of RVR. “We will look to inject more than $150m in the railway over the coming five years,” managing director Karim Sadek says.

“The first of several investments we are exploring in East Africa, it is a natural extension of our interest in African transport and logistics.

“The Kenya-Uganda Railway has immense potential waiting to be unlocked through the appropriate deployment of capital and management talent,” Sadekexplains. “We intend to acquire 100% of Sheltam, and to pursue other investments in Africa’s promising transport sector.” Transport in East Africa is among the costliest the world, that between Mombasa and Kampala running at more than $0.13 per ton/km. A lack of operating capacity has resulted in rail capturing less than 10% of the region’s transport market.

“An efficient rail network could, in time, bring East African transport costs down by as much as 50% due to the inherent operational and fuel efficiency of shipping by rail,” Citadel Capital’s managing director Amr El-Barbary says, pointing out that the railway currently hauls just over 1mta of the 16mta being handled in the port of Mombasa. “New investment and a fresh approach to management could see that figure grow to 5mta within five years.”