PRASA continues to struggle with railway squatters on Central Line

by | Mar 14, 2024

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The public participation stage of the removals process has stalled removals, while the government boasts of the jobs created by the eviction process

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The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) has had to delay the promised reopening of the Cape Town Central railway line, as public participation stage stalls removals of squatters.

The recent removals of around 800 households from the railway line ran into trouble as the national authorities did not consult the Metropolitan Municipality on the zoning requirements for the temporary housing in Phillipi.

PRASA has now announced plans to relocate 5,195 households encroaching on the rail reserve in the Western Cape in two phases, and has invested R643 million in the railway infrastructure rehabilitation.

Phase 1 targets approximately 1,245 households around the Langa station, with Phase 2 covering around 3,950 households in Nyanga, Phillippi, and Khayelitsha, pending land acquisition and statutory procedures.

Over 800 households have already been relocated to a temporary site on Stock Road to facilitate the recovery of the Central Line.

The railway corridor’s recovery efforts include refurbishment of stations like Philippi, Lentegeur, and Kapteinsklip to enhance functionality and passenger experience.

The government boasts that the relocation of the land invaders has created 922 job opportunities to date, “contributing significantly” to the local economy.

While 8.7 hectares of land has been secured for the Langa relocation, the Land-Use Application process has faced challenges, with over 900 objections received related to community safety, property values, and social amenities.

The PMC, chaired by the Deputy-Director General for Rail at the Department of Transport, is actively engaging with affected communities to address concerns and provide regular updates on the relocation progress.

PRASA emphasizes the importance of community input in fostering constructive dialogue and collaborative solutions for the benefit of all stakeholders.

A fully operational Central Line is essential to providing affordable transport to the sprawling City, but with general incompetence and unreliability, metals theft and railway squatting continuing to disrupt train schedules, PRASA is not likely to recover the 90% passenger losses from its peak capacity 15 years ago.

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