Prasa blames commuters for delays
THE PASSENGER Rail Agency of South Africa has slammed commuters for damaging its trains for being late, saying some of the delays were caused by the illegal behaviour of community members themselves.
Prasa highlighted a string of problems leading to train delays in KwaZulu-Natal, including rampant theft of electricity cables, damage to the railway line, dumping and building shacks too close to the line.
Spokesperson Zama Nomnganga said Prasa acknowledged the challenges on its side, such as old train infrastructure, but the situation was made worse by commuters not respecting the trains.
Prasa has come under fire in the recent past as commuters, angry that the trains are late, have set coaches on fire causing damage running into many millions of rand.
“I have never heard of a situation where a bus that is stuck on the freeway is stoned and torched because it is late,” said Nomnganga.
“In KwaZulu-Natal, we are facing a serious challenge with our trains that are being burnt, stoned and our drivers being attacked. We have serious problems in Zwelethu and South Coast,” he said.
Nomnganga said in the past 24 months, Prasa had spent more than R20 million to repair the damage to trains, while some have still not been repaired due to insurance companies refusing to pay.
“This compounds the issue of delays and overcrowding because, instead of having 12 trains running in an area, you now have six.
“People are causing extensive damage to our infrastructure. They are stealing electricity cables, railway sleepers and use them to make steps at their homes. They steal rail clippers which makes it difficult for the trains to turn and it causes delays.”
Nomnganga said some people did not use the normal overhead bridges to cross but instead ran on the railway line. In some instances, children played unsupervised on the line, which caused fatal accidents that delayed trains.
“People are building shacks right on the edge of the line which has made the line unstable,” he said.
“We understand the frustration of community members with the delays, and we plead with them to be understanding of the challenges that we face and not attack trains as some of the delays are unavoidable,” he said.