Metrorail's delay

Metrorail missed their own deadline for reporting back, following an announcement by the former regional manager of Metrorail Western Cape, Mthuthuzeli Swartz, on Tuesday 25^th March 2014 that safety critical interventions will be implemented to stabilize the rail service.

Back in March I wrote in my CapeTown Trains is Metrorail’s eToll that the interventions have no time-frames and deadlines for implementation.  

In personal interactions and in the media Metrorail then said these interventions will be implemented over the next four months. I still said back then, there are some interventions that should be implemented immediately, starting with better communication.

Now before I get to some of the interventions, Swartz left the failing (yes failing) rail service and Richard Walker, no stranger to the Western Cape, came in the hot seat. Walker came just as Prasa announced ticket prices will be increasing and this frustrated commuters even more.

Back in March, Metrorail got a R233million life-jacket to implement critical safety interventions and stabilize the service. This included:

• Track circuits and use of suitable technology
• Overhaul of track transformers
• Building of closer-by station for commuters in the Wallacedene area in Kraaifontein was added to planning
• Upgrading of a few stations
• A second train to Worcester was in the negotiation process in March, as well as using the Shosholoza Meyl to alleviate capacity constraints.
• Metrorail’s sms system would be resuscitated

The interventions came a few days after Transport Minister Dipuo Peters took a train from Kraaifontein to Cape Town station. It is interesting to note than that issues shared with the minister by regular commuters (as per her press release then) but did not form part of Metrorail’s interventions included:

• Dirty trains
• Broken windows
• Lack of ticket verification
• Security in peak times

Metrorail have been ignoring a few questions as well:

• Why did they wait until a second train derailed and damaged tracks leading to the closure of platforms at Cape Town, before interventions were implemented?
• Why can no one take responsibility?
• Why did Prasa wait (on the minister to listen to commuters) before more than R233 million was made available for urgent interventions?
• Did a certain manager not do their job to report tracks need urgent upgrades?
• Why can’t Metrorail/Prasa admit that they have failed to deliver an effective reliable rail service to communicate?

From a commuter perspective what was done?

• Trains are still delayed due to faulty track circuits
• Only building one can see is that of the new Operation Centre in Bellville (yes a new Ops Centre is being build there – that deserves its own blog).
• A few stations were upgraded
• The Worcester train is more faulty leaving commuters to travel more by bus, than a second train.
• The sms-system is being used again, but sms’ seems to be more delayed at times than trains.
• Trains are still dirty, windows broken and sometimes you even have to pack a swimsuit for a commute.
• There is still no security on trains, something I personally have been asking for more than a year now. I was told Metrorail is engaging with SAPS on the matter, it’s been more than twelve months – two ticket price hikes later and still no response from Metrorail.

Metrorail started rolling out wifi, this would have gone live in end of June/July - we basically in Spring, and not WiFi. In June I wrote Is free Wi-Fi good or bad for Metrorail

Metrorail has not only failed to deliver an effective and reliable service but also to give a report back on the safety critical interventions that would have taken four months. Unless Metrorail is using a different calendar, the four months ended, 25 days after the ticket prices increased, in July.