GroundUp reports that last week saw several train stations and substations hit by vandalism, theft and burning in Gauteng.  The affected stations included Park, Maraisburg, Doornfontein and Germiston.  

Maraisburg station, which was burnt on Monday, was badly damaged.  Johannesburg Park Station came under attack by a "group of criminals" on afternoon Tuesday.  On Thursday morning, a transformer at Benrose substation in Johannesburg was on fire, but as the substation was not operational no disruptions were caused.  These acts of vandalism coincided with Prasa’s attempted termination of a number of security contracts, which would have put many security guards protecting the railways out of work.  On Tuesday morning, Judge John Hlophe in the Cape High Court cast doubt on the assertion that the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) has enough security.  “The problem is there is no provision for the interim to protect the thousands of commuters every day,” he stated.  Hlophe ordered Prasa to continue the security contracts until the new tender was finalised, or until alternative measures were in place, including an interim security plan within the month.  The Gauteng High Court on Tuesday also ruled that Prasa must reinstate the services of the security companies that had been operating, ordering Prasa to give a calendar month’s notice before terminating the contracts.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Zoë Postman at TimesLIVE

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