Trains now run to Khayelitsha, but the Central Line is still not fully operational

Five years after the Central Line providing rail transport to people living on the Cape Flats, collapsed, ten trains are running daily on weekdays between Cape Town and Mandalay stations, but 14 stations are still not serviced. Photo: Steve Kretzmann

• The Central Line railway, servicing Cape Town’s largest population, collapsed in 2019.
• Several deadlines set for full repair of the line have not been met.
• However, train services are increasing as infrastructure is fixed.

As train services on Metrorail’s Central Line in Cape Town slowly return, commuters say they are impressed with the safety of the trains that are running, and the savings they are making compared to the cost of buses and minibus taxis.

Currently, trains on the Central Line, which services large communities on the Cape Flats such as Langa, Bonteheuwel, Philippi, Khayelitsha, and Mitchell’s Plain, only goes as far as Mandalay on the western edge of Khayelitsha. It does not stop at all the stations between Cape Town and Mandalay.

But people who live near the stations that are operational, are happy to once again use the train. Commuter Ncebakazi Liwa, from Nyanga, said she was glad she could catch the train to work in Cape Town again.

“It’s cheaper, safe, and warm,” Liwa said, but added: “We have been waiting for the service for far too long.”

She said word was spreading that trains were running again and the carriages were getting fuller. She also felt safer than in the past. “There are security guards. For now we feel safe.”

GroundUp took the train between Mandalay and Cape Town Central last week. The train ticket costs R8,50 for a single trip, while the same journey costs R25 by minibus taxi.

However, 14 stations on the line are not operational, despite numerous promises.

The last promise from the Transport Minister at the time, Sindiswe Chikunga, was that the Central Line would be operational in May this year.

Currently, the train does not stop at Esplanade, Paarden Eiland, Bonteheuwel, Netreg, Heideveld, and Philippi stations. The trains don’t go beyond Mandalay, failing to provide a service to commuters near Nolungile, Nonkqubela, Khayelitsha, Kuyasa, and Chris Hani stations. The branch line servicing Lentegeur, Mitchells Plain and Kapteinsklip stations, is also not operational.

Passengers on the Central Line train from Mandalay. Photo: Sandiso Phaliso

Metrorail Western Cape spokesperson Zinobulali Mihi said the refurbishment of the 14 stations that were still non-operational was underway, but had been delayed due to heavy rains.

Mihi said the recovery was conducted in phases. First the tracks were fixed, then the Overhead Traction Equipment (OHTE), then the stations.

“Most of the recovery work has been completed to enable for the resumption of services on all the lines. There is work in progress between Nolungile and Chris Hani station,” said Mihi.

She said there were many safety features in the new Electrical Multiple Units (EMU) trains, including on-board CCTV cameras, shatterproof windows, and door sensors. She said security guards were deployed on the trains and at the stations.

National Department of Transport spokesperson Esethu Hasane said the department had provided PRASA with funding spread over a number of years so the agency could rebuild the passenger rail lines.

Hasane said the focus was “to ensure the running of full service in order to bring back the passenger numbers that will translate into improved revenue”.

Suspension of services on the Central Line began in early 2018 following the murder of a security guard, and then the line closed completely in October 2019 when PRASA cancelled security contracts. With no security, equipment on the line was stolen and vandalised, and hundreds of people, no longer able to afford rent during Covid lockdown, built homes on the rail reserve and on the tracks. Clearing homes off tracks and finding alternative land for occupiers has led to tensions between PRASA and the City of Cape Town.

A partial service on the Central Line, between Nyanga and Maitland, first resumed in March 2023, but commuters had to change trains at Maitland, onto the Cape Flats or Northern lines.

In 2020 former Metrorail spokesperson Riana Scott said 25,000 commuters used to travel from the Khayelitsha station alone on a weekday.

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