Prasa Reopens the Pretoria to Kempton Park Service, Bringing the Agency Closer to Linking the Three Big Metros in Gauteng
The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) is pleased to announce the resumption of the commercial service from Pretoria to Kempton Park on Thursday, 28 September 2023, bringing the number of recovered lines to 20. Following the necessary permit from the Railway Safety Regulator, the agency introduced the service with the new modern high-tech trains from Pretoria to Kempton Park, with a service available from Kempton Park to Germiston station at both peak and off-peak.
The reopening of this line marks a critical milestone for PRASA’s recovery programme. “The resumption of this service takes us a step closer towards running the service between the three big Metros in Gauteng. Soon trains will be running from Pretoria, to Ekurhuleni, and all the way to Johannesburg Park Station, reflecting the interconnectedness between our metros,” says Hishaam Emeran, PRASA Group CEO.
Commuters can now save on their travel costs as a trip from Pretoria to Kempton Park costs just R9.50, while Pretoria to Germiston at R11.50, and Pretoria to Olifanstfontein at R8.50. This shows how our affordable services can ease the burden of travel costs on our commuters, many of whom are from the lower LSM Groups, spending up to 40% of their household income on transport.
PRASA has gained ground in its efforts to rebuild passenger rail corridors and move commuters on the new blue modern trains, Isitimela Sabantu. To date, 20 lines have been recovered out of the 40, with trains now running on 26 operational lines in Gauteng, Western Cape & KwaZulu Natal. The organization has made significant progress in rehabilitating the vandalized stations, with a total of 230 stations refurbished to basic functionality.
“The number of reopened lines and those earmarked for reopening tells the story of solid progress in returning passenger rail to its rightful place as the future backbone of public transport. By the end of this financial year, PRASA will have recovered 80% of the passenger rail corridors and lines, while bringing to our people a modernized passenger train experience,” continues Emeran.
PRASA wishes to congratulate our Engineers, Programme Managers, PRASA Corporare Real Estate Solutions, Rail Operations, and all involved in recovering the services. We commend our PRASA Rail SHEQ colleagues for ensuring that we get the approvals from the Railway Safety Regulator, and the War Room team for successfully implementing our Acceleration Programme to ensure that we meet our targets within the set timelines.