Despite the mess that the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) is in, national government will be the single rail owner of the network as fixing the company will require huge investment.
This is the view of transport minister Fikile Mbalula, who spoke during a debate in parliament yesterday on the state of commuter rail in the country.
Both the ruling party and opposition complained that the absence of commuter rail is having a severe impact on the poor whose income has been depleted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mbalula told parliament that Prasa has developed a security plan which includes flying drones over stations and other rail assets to protect rail infrastructure. He said a new Prasa board has been appointed and he expects it to bring a better report to parliament about the agency next year.
He rejected proposals by Gauteng and the Western Cape to have the commuter rail service run by the provinces.
“These calls are rather opportunistic and self-serving and such devolution will further exacerbate the problems we are confronted with. Modernising, maintaining and expanding rail infrastructure and network requires massive investments that can best be harnessed through a single ownership and operation model," Mbalula said.
“A fragmented approach would also mean metros and provinces that do not have the requisite resources or capacity to operate the service will be neglected. As a minister I’m not mandated to devolve railway to the metros. The mandate of the ANC government is to strengthen Prasa. I want to admit, Prasa has been ravaged, run down and [is] completely a mess.”
Rail infrastructure has been vandalised and stripped bare throughout the country. Gauteng and the Western Cape have seen the worst of the scourge of theft and vandalism.
Vandalism escalated during the lockdown after Prasa terminated its security contracts in April, leaving the network exposed.
Mbalula has since introduced new protection officers which will be using technology and working together with police to find the syndicates behind rail infrastructure theft.
ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said the destruction of rail infrastructure has cancelled the government’s effort of relaxing lockdown regulations to allow people to go back to work.
“The impact on the poor who depend on rail has been devastating. Not only has the cost of their travel dramatically increased from rail to taxis but this has come on top of the impact of Covid-19, which negatively affected their incomes,” she said.
EFF MP Nontando Nolutshungu proposed that the government abolish tenders at Prasa to improve the state’s capacity to invest and maintain rail infrastructure.
ACDP leader Rev Kenneth Meshoe said the government must be tough on those who are arrested for stealing rail infrastructure.
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