DA welcomes City of Cape Town getting its railway back on track

28 April 2022

The DA welcomes the announcement from the City of Cape Town that it has started the process of getting the City’s railways and trains up and running again for its residents after years of neglect from the ANC National Government. Today, the Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis announced that the Minister of Finance has given the City the green light to proceed with a detailed feasibility study into the devolution of the metropolitan railway in the city.

The decay of South Africa’s railway system is a national crisis, and we welcome the DA led City’s achievement on behalf of its residents. This comes after the shocking revelation from the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) that:

only 33 train sets are working compared to the 95 working trains in 1995.

daily train trips have been reduced from 444 per day to only 153 per day in the space of 3 years; and

there has been a 95% drop in South African passenger journeys since its peak in 2010.

The failure of the ANC National Government has meant thousands of the City’s residents have had to find alternative, and sometimes unsafe or more expensive, modes of transport to get to work. With the City in control, the residents of Cape Town will now have safe, affordable, and reliable transport daily.

The devolution of the railway was just one of the promises made by the DA in 2019 for its residents, and this announcement today shows that where the DA governs, the DA gets things done.

Issued by Chris Hunsinger, DA Shadow Minister of Transport, 28 April 2022