The last journey of the Kazungula ferry
The good, bad and ugly of Kazungula ferry Ferry parts were procured from Cape Town
Memories of the ferry also known as pontoon as it crossed the Zambazi River will remain indelible in the minds of Kasane and Kazungula residents as well as the tourism fraternity.
The machine that linked the north- south corridor, and traversed the Zambezi waters carrying heavy trucks with ease stopped operating this week, following the commissioning of the monumental Kazungula Bridge.
However, those that had grown fond of the machine take solace in the fact that the ferry will remain part of the rich history of Kasane and will become an iconic feature and centre of attraction.
Once docked, the ferry will not only continue adding value to the area as a restaurant, but will also give tourists a rare but pleasant experience.
The de- commissioning of the ferry leaves behind a mouth watering story of how it operated, having been bought at a cost of P16.5million, and generated more than P30 million through the years. The excitement it brought to its riders as well as the challenges of its operation will now be a distant memory. Operators, Central Transport Organisation ( CTO) General Manager, Lawrence Thebe said CTO has made some arrangements with the help of PPADB for the ferry to be decommissioned and transferred to the Botswana
Tourism Organisation ( BTO) who have a number of tourism ideas for its future use.
CTO started operating the ferry in 2011 and navigating the Zambezi waters following consultation between the governments of Botswana and Zambia, which started in 1999. For some reason, it was delayed due to limited funds. Shortly after that, the Ministry of Transport and Communications was given the mandate to assist with the ferrying of trucks across the Zambezi River.
Over the years, the ferry turned out to be a great tourist attraction for the Chobe area because of its unique design and beauty, as well as size that surpassed that of the two Zambian ferries.
However, its existence brought a number of challenges, one such being the fact that marine operations are not common in this part of the world, therefore Botswana had to bring personnel from Zambia to train local ferry operators.
Another challenge that CTO faced was that the design was based on American manufacturer’s specifications. The proportion unit which drives the ferry is an American product and each time the ferry broke down, it was difficult to source spare parts, with the nearest place being Cape Town, South Africa. Once parts are out of stock, it would mean fetching them from US. This contributed to the long wait of trucks, and people whenever the ferry broke down. Besides, there was a challenge of loading of trucks. Whenever a truck was being loaded into the ferry and it
pushed it out of its designated docking point, trucks would sink into the water. “We have had a number of cases where drivers almost drowned, but fortunately some could swim and come to safety. “Not all can drive the ferry, it is designed in such a way that when you cross the river, you need certain skills to be able to navigate through the water so that you reach the docking area that you want to go to because of the flow or current of the water,” Thebe noted. Although its services have been discontinued, the good thing is that drivers of the ferry would still keep their employment with the government. Most of them were initially licensed truck drivers. According to Thebe, they will be absorbed to their work station and will retain whatever benefits that they had accrued when driving the ferry. Some have however, decided to retire. At the beginning, ferry services were benchmarked from Zambian ferries in order to avoid discrepancies. The tickets were sold at CTO prior to boarding. The currency used was Pula, Rand and US Dollar with locals always being charged less. All charges were classed in categories. First Category of light duty passenger and commercial, included those on bikes who were charged P20 for locals, while foreigners were charged P65. Passenger cars including minivans and taxis were charged P60 for locals and P144 for foreigners, while for mini 16- seater and above, 4x4 vehicles, station wagon, 2x4 vehicle, single and twin cabs, foreigners paid P209, with locals paying P80. Light trucks less than five tonnes were charged at P100 for locals and P235 for foreigners.
Second Category involved medium duty passengers and commercial with Third Category involving heavy duty and commercial vehicles and the last Category was charged by 100kg of goods, as well as animals such as goats and cows.
Thebe said they will miss the challenges and the good feeling that one felt when riding across the river. “It is so beautiful when you look at the sun setting and the whole package that comes with when riding the ferry is going to be missed”.