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BL Premium reports that SA’s passenger rail and freight and operators are spending billions of rand a year on security to clamp down on theft and vandalism of infrastructure which have threatened, at times, a near economic shutdown of the country.
According to Hishaam Emeran, acting CEO of the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa), the effects of economic sabotage on infrastructure owned by Prasa has led to the “near total decimation of the [rail] network.” The agency experiences ongoing rail and cable theft and vandalism of its stations and substations. Of a total network of 2,300km of signalling cable, 1,000km had been stolen, including 100km of rail, and out of 590 stations only 129 were still functional, Emeran said. “In 2018/2019 we were operating on 40 service corridors, now we are operating on only 15,” he reported. This has led to the number of passengers carried declining from 500 million a year to 17 million. Prasa is having to spend R7bn a year on security. The total cost to the economy of the deterioration in the operator’s network and service delivery is estimated at R15bn to R20bn per year. Collaboration between Transnet and law enforcement had led to more than 1,200 suspects being arrested, but the conviction rate was low, and the legal processes very slow, Derby lamented.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Denene Erasmus at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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