News24 reports that train commuters who went on the rampage in Umlazi, south of Durban, after trains arrived late on Friday morning were angry because they had not been provided with alternative transport.  

According to a local resident, Linda Khumalo, four cars had already been torched when he arrived at the scene.  "I gathered from the scene that the commuters became angry when the trains did not arrive on time and they had not been provided with alternative transport," Khumalo indicated.  Their complaint had been that they had to pay for minibus taxis to take them to work even though they had purchased tickets for the whole week.  Another resident, Armstrong Khuzwayo, said the situation flared up when a security guard started shooting as commuters were complaining.  "The people became violent and started burning cars," he claimed.  Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that the train commuters set four cars alight and damaged a ticket office and a motor train coach.  He said the incident occurred just after 06:00 and extensive damage had been caused to the train station when more than 1,000 commuters at Umlazi railway station became angry about late trains.  The Public Order Police Unit and eThekwini Metro Police were summoned to monitor the situation.

• Read this report by Mxolisi Mngadi in full at News24

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