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For more than four years now the City of Cape Town has been trying to get PRASA to sign some sort of deal to allow them to revive the passenger rail service in and around the city.
While PRASA had been dragging their feet and coming up with all sorts of nonsensical reasons why they should stay in charge, the rail service slowly deteriorated to the point where railway lines became shack cities and the trains’ only occupants were pigeons and skollies.
Fortunately, PRASA has now realised that they have no clue or will to fix the problems, and following protracted court action, threats of an intergovernmental dispute, and more than a year of negotiations, signed a Service Level Plan (SLP) with the city.
The SLP, which was signed by PRASA on December 5th, lays the foundation for the City to take over the management of passenger rail in Cape Town from PRASA.
While the SLP was being negotiated, the City conducted its own feasibility study for managing the passenger rail network, which was passed by the Council on the same day the SLP was signed.
In his council speech, Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said he was “glad to announce” PRASA had signed the SLP “to improve Metrorail in the short-term”.
“This is a big step towards improving the quality and reliability of the service through a legally binding agreement, and I am very pleased that we managed to get this finalised this year.”
Hill-Lewis said the plan would be closely monitored by a joint committee with PRASA.
Because of the decline in Cape Town’s passenger rail service since 2013, with mismanagement, theft, and vandalism bringing it to its knees in 2020, the SLP will require PRASA to provide regular reports to the City, with the City overseeing commitments to revitalise stations, introduce more train sets, recommission services, and increase the number of daily passengers and train trips.
As part of the SLP, the City also commits to providing the municipal services needed to support and enhance passenger rail; encouraging transit-oriented development along rail corridors; and expediting permits through the City’s services and development planning departments.
“Taking charge of Metrorail is especially important for lower-income households, who would save an estimated R932-million a year if trains were working as they should.”
The mayor should have added that those savings would have been a reality if PRASA worked as it should too, but alas, the PRASA board seems to be as useless as the too-tall Spanish trains they were all hot for, and about as competent as the previous three Transport Ministers.
Despite the deal, rail activist organisation #UnitedBehind says that it still falls short of what is needed for PRASA to fully meet its Constitutional and statutory obligations to commuters.
“Despite PRASA having had over a year to finalise it, the plan lacks enforceable commitments, timelines, or measures that would enable it to function as a roadmap for improving commuter rail services,” said #UniteBehind Executive Director Zukie Vuka.
The plan, according to Vuka, does not identify specific individuals or executives responsible for implementing its provisions, leaving no clear structure for accountability or consequences for failure.
“There are no initiatives to develop the skills or resources necessary to enhance the City’s or PRASA’s capacity to deliver on their public transport responsibilities.”
PRASA spokesperson, Andiswa Makanda, did not respond to #UnitedBehind concerns, but hopefully, the City of Cape Town can now begin the slow process of rebuilding the city’s once-famous passenger rail.
[source:groundup]
