railways africa november 2011
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ROLLING STOCK | PERWAY | INFRASTRUCTURE | SIGNALLING | OPERATORS | COMMENT
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WWW.RAILWAYSAFRICA.COM
SCAW METALSGROUP
SPECIALIST CASTINGS FOR THE RAILROAD INDUSTRYSPECIALIST CASTINGS FOR THE RAILROAD INDUSTRY
Tel: +27 11 842-9303 • Fax: +27 11 842-9710Website: www.scaw.co.za
The Scaw Metals Group (Scaw) is an international group, manufacturing a diverse range of steel products. Its principaloperations are located in South Africa, South America, Canada and Australia. Smaller operations are in Namibia,Zimbabwe and Zambia. Scaw’s specialist castings for the railroad industry include bogies used in freight cars,locomotives and passenger cars. Other products manufactured include:
Freight car castings:• Side Frames • Bolsters• Yokes • Cast steel monobloc wheels• Draw-gear components• Centre plates
Cast steel frames for locomotives:• Steerable locomotive frames• Mounting for electrical parking brakes and brakehangers• Traction motor end shields and suspension tubes in cast
steel, manufactured to customer requirements
Passenger car castings:• High speed, high stability radial axle bogies for motored
and unmotored passenger vehicles• Self steering bogies• Fully machined frames ready for assembly into bogies,
including the fitting of bushings and wear plates• Integrally cast brake hanger brackets and mounting
for auxiliary equipment
Scaw has produced castings for the railroad industry since 1921and is a technological leader in this field and has participated in thedevelopment of unique designs such as the cast adaptor sub-frameassembly used in the “Scheffel” radial axle truck.
Scaw manufactures castings under licence to various licensors, butis an open foundry with the capability to undertake work accordingto individual customer requirements. The company has producedthousands of sets of steel castings for freight cars for both the localand export markets. These include side frames and bolsters thathave been approved by the Association of American Railroads foruse on North American railroads.
Scaw supplies globally and also offers nationwide distributionin South Africa through its strategically located branchesthroughout the country.
Fabf
orm
Gra
phic
s cc
(011
) 622
-991
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RAILWAYS AFRICA / FOREWORD
Foreword
The copyright on all material in this magazine is expressly reserved and vested in Rail Link Communications cc, unless otherwise stated. No material may be reproduced in any form, in part or in whole, without the permission of the publishers. Please note that the opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers of Rail Link Communications cc unless otherwise stated. While precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information, neither the Editor, Publisher or Contributor can be held liable for any inaccuracies or damages that may arise.
3November 2011 Railways Africa www.railwaysafrica.com
BARBARA SHEATPublisher / Railways Africa
PUBLISHERBarbara Sheat
EDITOR Rollo Dickson
DESIGN & LAYOUTGrazia Muto
ADVERTISINGKim Bevan
SUBSCRIPTIONS Kim Bevan
CONTRIBUTORSAshley Peter
Bruno Martin
Eugene Armer
Jacque Wepener
John Batwell
Martin Welzel
Peter Bagshawe
ISSN 1029 - 2756
Rail Link Communications ccPO Box 4794 Randburg 2125
Tel: +27 87 940 9278
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: railwaysafrica
Website: www.railwaysafrica.com
ROLLING STOCK | PERWAY | INFRASTRUCTURE | SIGNALLING | OPERATORS | COMMENT
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As Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa
(Prasa) CEO Lucky Montana emphasises
time and again - you can’t go on renovating
rolling stock indefi nitely. It isn’t just
a question of replacing components
(assuming components are still obtainable).
Metrorail’s current fl eet, he points out, is
based on outdated technology.
If we in publishing were in a similar boat,
we should still be putting magazines
together with galley proofs, scissors and
Stephen’s glue. It was Stephen’s wasn’t it?
Those bottles that bulged at the bottom, so
they didn’t fall over when you looked the
other way, and the chisel-shaped rubber
cap at the top with a slit? Simplicity itself
to use and one didn’t get glue all over
one’s clothes and the rest of the world.
(Stephen’s certainly did the ink. There were
adverts for it on every suburban station…..
But I digress.)
Electronic publishing has speeded up
production unimaginably; we wouldn’t want
to go back 50 years, that’s for sure. This
doesn’t mean there aren’t - and won’t be
- better ways of doing things. Sometimes
it’s a good idea to try other methods and
means. And sometimes old ways turn out
not so badly after all. In fact, discontinuing
our printed magazine might just have been
a tiny bit premature. To be sure, the on-line
version has been well received. Be that as it
may, a careful look back suggests the best
days of our lives were the months when the
two ran parallel – printed and on-line, both
together.
As they are going to do again from February,
our fi rst issue in 2012. See you then.
We offer proven rail products with strong after sales service and support in the key markets of:
Our locally manufactured and assembled product offerings are further enhanced by reliably engineered
products supplied through strategic alliances with leading international and locally based Original G
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5November 2011 Railways Africa www.railwaysafrica.com
DRC Train Problems 18
Lesotho Rail Initiative 20
New TFR Route Through Swaziland 24
Africa Update
RAILWAYS AFRICA / CONTENTS
ContentsContents
PLASSERAILDynamic Track Stabilising 6
Features 6
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36
www.railwaysafrica.com
Signalling at Ngqura 30
PRASA Fleet Renewal 40
From Rhodesfi eld, Gautrain still only goes West 41
SA Rail News
Umgeni Steam Railway (USR), KwaZulu-Natal 42
Sanrasm, Krugersdorp 43
Railway Heritage
of the ballast stone and an uncontrolled re-arrangement of the
ballast stones.
Figure 1 illustrates that the ballast structure has reduced volume
but the gridlines have not changed their angle. The ballast stones
have not rearranged themselves against one another. They were
simply crushed into a new confi guration.
Graphically this high initial settlement can be seen in Figure 2
which shows the track settlement in millimetres (vertical axis)
against the traffi c in million gross tons (horizontal axis).
This period of high initial settlement is clearly visible during the
fi rst 100,000 tons of traffi c. The track has now reached 70 to 80%
of its original resistance. During this period speed restrictions
are imposed due to the reduced lateral resistance of the track. This
process of compacting the track by the weight of passing trains at
a reduced speed has a considerable impact on train operations.
1. INTRODUCTIONThere is hardly any other track laying and track maintenance action
that has been as intensively investigated by railways and research
institutes as dynamic stabilisation.
The fi ndings from these extensive tests have contributed towards
optimisation of this process. By drawing on these tests this
document will discuss the theory of dynamic track stabilisation.
2. UNEVEN TRACK SETTLEMENT AFTER MAINTENANCE
After months of ballast consolidation by passing trains, the
track panel is anchored in the ballast bed by high resistance to
displacement.
However, horizontal and vertical deviations from the desired
geometry develop over a period of time and cyclic maintenance
tamping or ballast cleaning is required to restore the designed
track geometry and the ballast resilience.
During the ballast cleaning process the fi nes are removed from
the ballast and if required new ballast is added. This process
dramatically increases the void spaces between the ballast stones
through the entire depth of the ballast bed.
During the tamping process the sleeper is lifted and aligned. This
creates a void below the sleeper and at the sleeper head. The
tamping tines compact the ballast in the void below the sleeper
whereas the void at the sleeper head can only be fi lled by ballast
under gravity. The tamping process disturbs the ballast bed and
increases the total volume of void spaces between the ballast
stones below the sleeper and at the sleeper head.
Some of the ballast stones will now lie in an unstable position with
only their corners and edges touching due to the greater void space.
Therefore, the ability of the track to resist forces exerted upon it
directly after these maintenance activities is greatly reduced.
Subjecting the track to traffi c at normal speed can therefore
have a detrimental effect in terms of settlement and stability. To
overcome this, the customary practice after maintenance has
been to let trains compact the track bed with their weight when
passing at restricted speed for a period of time. In other words,
speed restrictions are imposed.
The load from trains will cause very high pressure on the ballast
edges and corners, resulting in high initial crushing and abrasion
The previous articles focused on tamping to correct the geometry of the track. Tamping is the most frequent
of all track maintenance activities and also one of the most important in ensuring the reliability, availability,
maintainability, affordability and safety of the line. However, any ballast maintenance disturbs the track’s
stability. By dynamically stabilising the track directly following ballast maintenance, stability of the track and
resistance against lateral displacement can be regained to the point where the track can be immediately reopened
at normal track speed, saving time and money. Dynamic stabilisation has also proved to extend the tamping cycle.
Figure 1: High initial crushing of the ballast after ballast maintenance,
caused by traffi c.
Figure 2: Track settlement in relation to train loads.
6 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
PLASSERAIL
DYNAMIC TRACK STABILISING
PERFORMANCE
Your Specialist Partner ForMechanised RailwayTrack Maintenance
& ConstructionMachinery
Plasser South Africa (PTY) Ltd
20 Lautre Rd, Stormill, Roodepoort; P O Box 103 Maraisburg, 1700
Tel: (011) 761-2400 Telefax: (011) 474-3582 email: [email protected]
This is illustrated once again by the ballast arrangement with a
grid drawn over it, in Figure 5. The fi gure shows how the ballast
stones change their orientation, one to the other. This is illustrated
by the change in the angle of the gridlines of the stones.
The controlled settlement with dynamic stabilisation achieves
a relative force-free rearrangement of the ballast stones; only
around 30% of the forces occurring due to traffi c loading being
transmitted. The ballast is therefore not unduly stressed and
this reduces the abrasion and crushing of ballast during the initial
high settlement under traffi c.
The voids between the ballast stones are now reduced and instead
of individual contact points the ballast stones have a larger
number of contact surfaces. The settlement is homogeneous
over the length of the dynamically stabilised track which would
otherwise have occurred unevenly under traffi c loading.
4. THE EFFECT OF DYNAMIC STABILISATION
4.1 The Effect of Stabilisation on Track SettlementThe dynamic track stabilising machine attains within seconds
the same settlement which the train loads achieve in days.
When a dynamically stabilised track is compared to a non-stabilised
track on the same graph, (see Figure 6), it clearly shows how the
high initial settlement has been removed by stabilisation.
In this example a settlement of 12mm was achieved with dynamic
stabilisation which is equivalent to approximately 140,000 gross
ton traffi c.
In addition, within 72 hours of ballast cleaning, the tamping machine
must return and retamp, in order to correct the high and uneven
settlement that would have occurred. This increases the total cost
of maintenance and is disruptive to train operations.
In 1974/5 Plasser & Theurer developed the dynamic track stabilising
machine with the aim of avoiding these problems associated with
ballast maintenance.
3. CONTROLLED SETTLEMENT WITH DYNAMIC TRACK STABILISING
The dynamic stabilising machine is introduced directly behind
the tamping machine after ballast maintenance such as tamping,
ballast cleaning or track renewal.
This is an on-track machine which consists of two hydraulically-
driven, vibratory stabilising units located under the stabilising
vehicle between the axles. It sets the track in horizontal oscillation
directed crosswise/laterally to the track while at the same time
applying a static vertical load. See Figure 4.
The liquefaction (fl uidisation) induced by the vibration together with
the static vertical load causes the ballast stones to settle closer
together in a more homogeneous and compact grouping in the
entire ballast bed.
Figure 3: The PTS90 dynamic track stabilising machine.
Figure 4: The stabiliser applies a horizontal vibration with static
vertical load.
Figure 5: Homogeneous settlement made possible by the fl uidisation
induced by vibration.
Figure 6: Track settlement in relation to train loads.
8 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
PLASSERAIL
Specialists in refurbishment, repair and upgrade of wagons and major supplier of new wagons to the heavy haul
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4.2 The Effect of Stabilisation on Tamping CyclesThe Spoornet Track Testing Centre did extensive testing and
evaluation on the effect of dynamic stabilising on the settlement
and cant retention of curved track on the coal line.
For comparison purposes of tamping alone versus tamping and
stabilising of curves, eight curves were selected for fi eld tests. All
the curves were grouped in pairs, one being stabilised at the start
of the test and the other not.
Each of the groups of test curves mentioned is characterised by its
homogeneity with respect to ballast thickness and fouling, geology,
track stiffness and geometric features.
One of the observations during the testing was the effect of
stabilisation on the cant deterioration of the curve. The high
percentage of cant loss on the non-stabilised curves can be seen
clearly from the table in Figure 7.
A specifi c “amount of settlement” can not be insisted upon since
the amount of settlement depends upon a number of factors
including:
• Height of the preceding lift by the tamping machine.
During normal maintenance work the degree of settlement
introduced by the stabiliser is usually around 10–15mm
after a maintenance lift of 25mm. The maximum settlement
that can be achieved on new lines or ballast-cleaned lines
is around 25mm. To achieve this, tamping and dynamic
stabilising is done in layers of approximately 100mm.
• The thickness of the ballast bed. Smaller settlements can
be expected on thinner ballast profi les.
• Size and grading of the ballast stones.
• Degree of contamination of the ballast bed. Very
contaminated ballast will have lower settlements. Very fi ne
contaminants and moisture in the ballast can however act
as a lubricant to enhance the movement and re-orientation
of the ballast, resulting in higher settlements.
• Condition of the other permanent way material and
components. Experience has shown that the effectiveness
of stabilisation is markedly reduced on track with loose
fastenings or worn baseplates. Loose fastening prevents the
transmission of vibrations from the rail to the sleeper, so
preventing a state of liquefaction.
The repeated runs of the dynamic track stabilising machine
immediately following one another brings no noticeable improved
consolidation compared to a single pass only. Figure 7: Cant loss comparison.
Test no.
Curve no.
Cant before maintenance
(mm)
Cant after maintenance
(mm)
Cant after 50 MGT
(mm)
Loss of cant(%)
N1* 75 18.6 20.6 19.7 45%
N2 79 14.7 18.6 16.1 64%
N3* 77 18.8 21.1 20.5 28%
N4 76 17.5 21 17.9 89%
S1* 188 8.3 20.6 15.9 38%
S2 159 8.8 9.9 8.7 110%
S3* 195 28.2 37.8 36.2 17%
S4 193 9.8 11.2 9.9 96%
*Stabilised curveSource - RTR 4 (1997), P J Gräbe, J S Maree
10 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
PLASSERAIL
4.3 The Effect of Stabilisation on Track StrengthTrack strength refers to the track’s resistance to lateral
displacement. If the lateral force caused by trains and or thermal
stress exceeds the track’s resistance to lateral displacement,
a speed restriction must be imposed so that operating safety is
guaranteed at all times.
Several methods of measuring track strength have been
developed by different railway administrations. These include –
• the single-sleeper displacement method, and
• the “07” method
After 50 MGT (approximately 6 months) the stabilised curves have
lost only 30% on average of the given cant whereas the unstabilised
test curves have lost nearly all of the cant (90 % on average).
From the fi eld tests it was noted that none of the test curves
required tamping after 50 MGT (6 months), which is the normal
tamping cycle on the coal line. These conclusions were drawn
based on the track roughness as well as the cant of each curve
at the time.
Due to the higher initial quality of using dynamic stabilisation the
required tamping intervention interval improved from 50 MGT to
115 MGT confi rmed by the development of a ballast tamping model.
This model shows, on a graph, the track roughness or standard
deviation of the parameter vertical alignment (top) as measured by
the IM2000 Infrastructure Measuring Vehicle on the vertical axis
and the traffi c in MGT on the horizontal axis.
By combining engineering inputs with track experience, a standard
deviation for top of approximately 1.6mm was found to be the
maximum allowable roughness before tamping intervention must
take place.
Consecutive standard deviations for a homogeneous section
of track are plotted against increasing traffi c (MGT). A suitable
mathematical trend is made through the available data to
determine the deterioration function. The function is computed
for future traffi c and the expected time for maintenance is
calculated where the predicted deterioration intersects the
intervention level.
Figure 8: Ballast tamping model.
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531_AP Presslink
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12 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
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Specialists in products and services for rail cargo as well as ISO container refurbishing and wagon cleaning,
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AUXILIARY BUSINESS
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This improvement of track stability after stabilisation can be
attributed to the rise in the sum of contact surfaces between
sleepers and ballast stone interfaces.
5. CONCLUSIONThe aim of all track maintenance must be to place the track in the
geometrically correct position at the highest initial quality and to
conserve this state for a longer period of time.
Stabilising does not in itself improve the geometry of the track.
It consolidates the ballast to improve the retention of the track
geometry, thus extending the period between maintenance
interventions. It also increases the stability of the track which has
the following advantages:
• The safety to traffi c is considerably increased.
• The higher stability of the ballast bed will allow the maximum
line speed immediately after maintenance.
• The need for follow-up tamping after initial consolidation of
the ballast is avoided.
• By avoiding temporary speed restrictions the reliability of the
rail service is improved.
4.3.1 The Single-sleeper Displacement MethodThis method was used by Franz Plasser research department
in collaboration with the German Railways. Single sleepers are
disconnected from the rails and laterally shifted by applying a
hydraulic force.
The graph in Figure 10 shows the hydraulic force required to shift
the sleeper (measured in kN) on the vertical axes (which is equal
to the lateral resistance of the track) and the displacement in
millimetres on the horizontal axes.
For an equal shift of 2mm after tamping a force of 7.8kN per single
sleeper was necessary (100%), while before tamping a force of
13.9kN (180%) had to be applied.
After stabilising with a dynamic stabiliser a force of 10.5kN (136%)
was required – an improvement of 36% on tamping alone.
4.3.2 The “07” MethodThe Netherlands Railways measured lateral resistance using a
tamping machine on timber sleepers. By using a special hydraulic
circuit, the track was vertically loaded with 12 tons. The force
necessary to slew the track was measured at the lining cylinders
and the displacement against the lining cord.
Similar to the lateral displacement method the graph (Figure
12) shows approximately half of the lateral resistance to be
recuperated after stabilisation.
Figure 9: Single sleeper displacement method.
Figure 10: Force required displacing the sleeper 2mm.
Figure 12: Force required to displace the sleeper.
Figure 11: The “07” method.
14 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
PLASSERAIL
In the next article, ballast management using ballast regulating machines will be addressed. If one considers that ballast costs in excess of R150 per cubic metre, that there is between 1,200 and 1,600 cubic metres of ballast per kilometre and that ballast is “consumed” at approximately 3% per annum, the signifi cance of proper ballast management is very apparent.
REFERENCES:
1. British Railways (BR) Report– Research Derby sectional note no 378, 10 March 1977
2. FERGUSON H – British Rail looks to business motive. New Civil Engineer, 8 October 1987
3. FORTIN J P – Dynamic stabilisation to follow track renewals. International Railway Journal, September 1978
4. FRANZ PLASSER RESEARCH & TESTING DEPARTMENT – DGS The dynamic track stabiliser, principles, tests and operating results. Issue 1991
5. GLAWISCHNIG W & RIESSBERGER K – Dynamic track stabiliser – strength through vibrations. Internationales verkwhrswesen, 1/79
6. GRÄBE P J & MAREE J S – Use of a dynamic track stabiliser to improve track maintenance and optimisation of track tamping. RTR 4, 1997
7. HERING H – Application and testing of the dynamic track stabiliser on new lines. Rail Engineering International. Edition 1989, no 2
8. LI D, COOKE J & SHUST B – The effect of track maintenance on lateral strength – AAR research, test & development report. Railway track and
structures, August 1997
9. LICHTBERGER B – The homogenisation and stabilisation of the ballast bed. Rail Engineering International. Edition 1993 no 1
10. Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) Report no Abt 8e, November 1976
11. PETTY J – 60 ton giant gives slow Sunday trains a shake-up. The Daily Telegraph, 14 March 1988
12. PLASSER & THEURER – Technical description of the dynamic track stabiliser DGS 42 N
13. PLASSER & THEURER – The technology of dynamic track stabilisation (brochures, videos and reports)
14. PLASSER AMERICAN – PTS-90, Dynamic track stabiliser. 18 January 1999
15. RIESSBERGER K – Towards a more stable bed. Railway Gazette, March 1977
16. RIESSBERGER K & WENTY R – Track quality, key to load bearing capacity and effi cient maintenance. IHHA Conference 1993
17. SARI G – The infl uence of the dynamic track stabiliser on track geometry. Transport International. no 1 June 1981
18. SCHUBERT E – Contribution to the stabilisation of track geometry.
19. Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français (SNCF - the French national railway) Report no R 3260-76-06
16 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
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COACH BUSINESS
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DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (DRC)DRC TRAIN PROBLEMSAccording to a recent BBC programme, the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) – twelfth largest country in the world - covers
2,344,858km2. Fourth most populated state in Africa, “It has more
than 70% of the world’s coltan, used to make vital components
of mobile phones, 30% of the planet’s diamond reserves and vast
deposits of cobalt, copper and bauxite.” The capital Kinshasa is
home to more than 8 million.
Rail routes total 3,641km offi cially but almost nothing is running.
When it does, journeys that should take hours run into days and
derailments are endemic. Current hopes centre on World Bank
assistance to restore the badly run-down infrastructure.
KENYAKENYA RAILWAY MUSEUMAdapted from:http://anthonyajuma.articlesbase.com/destinations-articles/
the-major-tourists-attraction-in-nairobikenyaeast-africa-
region-4218511.html#ixzz1YtOSXoYB
Among important tourist attractions In Nairobi is the Kenya
Railways Museum, situated in an old building at the north-west end
of the station, along Uhuru Highway. Established in 1917 by the
then East African Railways and Harbours Corporation, it safeguards
and exhibits remnants and records of the railways of East Africa
from their date of establishment to the present day.
The displays include an impressive collection of steam locomotives
and rolling stock, as well as smaller exhibits and models. Apart from
trains and ship models, the carriage used during the hunt for the
“man-eater of Kima” in 1900 is exhibited in the yard. Photographs
depict the construction of the original Uganda Railway, and there
are also maps, drawings and railway magazines.
The museum is still connected to the operating railway, permitting
access to the main-line for steam-hauled tours.
Walking Tour Kibera“This is a social tourism mission intended to increase consciousness
about the Kibera slums in Kenya. The Kibera slum is the most highly
populated informal settlement in East Africa, accommodating
about one third of Nairobi’s population. The walking tour of Kibera
offers safe walking tours for the open-minded traveller and all
its profi ts benefi t the community by providing employment and
supporting local development. This tour is for any one who would
like to experience the hardships of slum life in Kenya. It is located
5km from the [Nairobi} city centre and is the second largest slum in
sub-Sahara Africa, second to Soweto slums in South Africa.”
[One is not at all sure that residents would appreciate Soweto being
described as the largest slum in Africa. – Editor: Railways Africa.]
PRIVATE SECTOR TO RUN NAIROBI TRANSPORTAccording to Business Daily (published in Nairobi), quoting Kenyan
transport minister Amos Kimunya, the government is to build the
planned 167km urban road and rail system in Nairobi, leaving
private companies to manage the services. Investors will be invited
to provide rolling stock such as trains and high-capacity buses in
N
0 500 Kilometres
AT
LA
NT
IC O
CE
AN
C AMEROON
CENTR AL AFRIC AN REPUBLIC
DEMOCR ATIC REPUBLIC
OF CONGO (DRC )
SUDAN
UG
AN
DA
BURUNDIRWANDA
GABON
GUINEA
CONGO
TA
NZ
AN
IA
ZAMBIA
ANGOLA
Bondo
Bumba
Ilebo
Matadi
600mm Gauge
1,067mm Gauge
KINSHASA
Kananga
Kindu
Kabalo
KaminaMutshatsha
Lubumbashi
Tenke
Sakania
To Lusaka
To Lobito
Dilolo
Kalemie
Titule
Mungbere
AkauKom
baAndom
a
Isiro
Ex-South African 1,975hp class 32 loco photographed in the DRC by Martin
Welzel in 1991. GE U18C1 type, 1-Co-Co-1, dating from 1959.
NAIROBI
Voi
Mombasa
Lamu
Nakuru
Kampala Malaba
EntebbeKisumu
Mwanza
100 200 400km
TANZANIA
UGANDA
SUDAN ETHIOPIA
KENYA
SOM
ALI
A
18 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
AFRICA UPDATEAFRICA UPDATE
AFRICA UPDATE
in our national power grid. We don’t want to deny other sectors
growth by taking all the power to trains,’ the minister explains.
“Phase One of the MRTS project would cover the corridors along
Thika Road I, Juja Road, Jogoo Road, Ngong Road 1, Limuru Road
and Mombasa Road comprising 50.18km of elevated rail lines and
40.42km of road.
“The second phase covers Outer Ring Road, Thika II, Waiyaki Way,
Ngong Road II, Thika Road III and Lang’ata Road. The rail and
road network in this phase would total 35.04km and 41.44km
respectively. Consult Engineering and APEC Limited estimate the
MRTS project would cost about Sh409 billion to implement though
the budget could be varied once the design is complete. Some of
the highways covered by this project may be upgraded to between
four and eight lanes, the consultants said.”
LESOTHOLESOTHO RAIL INITIATIVEMembers of the Southern African Railway Association (Sara)
represent each of the region’s railways. The government of
Lesotho, which has no railway, is to send observers to all future
meetings of the association, which has agreed to support the
small landlocked country in its endeavour to build a rail system
for itself. An existing Transnet branch does enter Lesotho but
continues for only 2km to Maseru, and no other points are
served. Sara executive Gideon Mahlalela, who is CEO of Swaziland
Railway, told FTW that his country would give Lesotho the benefi t
of its rail experience.
terms of the Nairobi Metropolitan Mass Rapid Transport System
(MRTS), set to start in 2012.
“The grid will link the city centre with key neighbouring towns and
municipalities such as Kikuyu, Thika, Ruiru, Athi River, Kitengela,
Machakos, Limuru and Kajiado. A feasibility study by Consult
Engineering Services of India and its Kenyan partner APEC Limited
showed the project would cover nine road corridors including
the Nairobi Railway Station (NRS)-Ruiru-Thika, NRS-Juja Road-
Kangundo, NRS-Jomo Kenyatta Airport-Athi River, NRS-Langata
Road-Karen and NRS-Upper Hill-Ngong.
“The Nairobi railway station area, including the yards, has been
proposed for the construction of a 24-storey central hub terminal
for the transport system where all lines would originate or
terminate. A blueprint presented to the government showed the
road network would be serviced by an exclusive rapid bus system,
complete with special feeder services.
“The special bus routes will run alongside the normal highways
except within the central business district (CBD) where the system
would be elevated. An estimated 378 buses would be required to
operate this exclusive service by 2015.
“The rail network is proposed on an elevated platform with a total
of 76 stations and fi ve maintenance depots.
“Diesel-powered trains will be used initially. ‘For a start we will
stick to diesel-powered trains until we sort out capacity issues
20 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
AFRICA UPDATE
International Railway
Industry Standard
R A I L V E H I C L E S Y S T E M S
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3 Derrick Road (Corner Green Road)
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Knorr-Bremse South Africa (Pty) Ltd (KBSA) has had IRIS certification since January 2009 and has just successfully passed not
only a re-certification but also an upgrade audit against revision 2 valid from 5 January 2011. KBSA is the first and only company
in Africa to have obtained IRIS certification and has experienced the benefits of this certification by reduced non-conformities,
improved customer support, improved product quality from suppliers – simply, improved business management across the
entire supply chain. | www.knorr-bremse.com |
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Specialist manufacturers of parts and sub-assemblies for locomotives, coaches and wagons. Processes include
laser cutting, bending, forging and the fabrication of carbon and stainless steel alloys.
ROLLING STOCK EQUIPMENT BUSINESS
Tel: +27 (0)12 391 1304 Fax: +27 (0)12 391 1371 Email: [email protected]
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export of its products to countries in the Economic Community of
West African States (Ecowas).
Adesokan said the Dangote group had invested heavily on haulage
with the purchase of over 2,000 trucks to distribute cement to the
various depots in the country. “This is our own corporate social
responsibility initiative and no other company has done this.”
BIG BLDGS IN WAY OF ABUJA LRTResponding to questions during a tour of work on the Abuja light
rail project, Chairman of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE
- Abuja Chapter) Joseph Olatunde Akinteye called for the “quick
demolition” of structures illegally erected on the land. Apparently
these include the NNPC Mega Filling Station, Danzali Plaza and “a
host of other structures” in the central business district of Abuja.
Akinteye demanded strong punitive action against offi cials of the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration for “deliberately
upsetting the Abuja master plan” through allocating land for these
projects.
He pointed out that the action of these “unpatriotic persons”
cost innocent Nigerians who had been wrongly allotted such land,
“colossal fi nancial loss.”
SIERRA LEONECHINESE COMPANY’S PROBLEMS IN SIERRA LEONEThe China Railway Seventh Group (CRSG), currently constructing
infrastructure for the government of Sierra Leone, faces problems
with existing services that were supposed to be removed in advance
of the work, which is now falling behind schedule. According to
the Concord Times (published in the capital, Freetown), utility
companies involved include the Guma Valley Water Company
(GVWC), the National Power Authority (NPA) and Sierratel.
Project coordinator for CRSG Liu Fei was quoted saying “We have
long informed these companies to remove their existing pipes
and cables where the work is being done but to no avail. The snail
pace at which construction is moving is not our own making. We
have everything in place to complete the job within the shortest
possible time but the utility companies are not helping matters.
We have informed them long before now to have their existing
pipes and cables removed but that is yet to be adhered to. Every
MOZAMBIQUENACALA PORT AND RAILWAYBrazil’s Vale mining company intends to double production of its
Moatize coal mine to 22 million tons a year at a cost of $US6 billion.
Limited exports began in June 2011, using the Sena line to the coal
terminal at the port of Beira, but even when upgrading is fi nally
complete, capacity on this route is unlikely to exceed about 6mta.
To increase output, a new rail link of about 100km is to be built
east of Moatize into Malawi, to join the existing railway that runs
from there to the northern Mozambique deep-water port of Nacala.
Vale sales and marketing manager Marcelo Mattos is quoted
saying that this corridor would be able to move 18mta.
NIGERIACEMENT BY RAIL IN NIGERIAAccording to Nigerian minister of transport Senator Idris Umar,
collaboration between the management of Nigeria Railway
Corporation (NRC) and Lafarge Cement Wapco to haul its product
will help meet growing demands for cement across the nation and
reduce road damage caused by heavy-duty trucks. His speech was
read by NRC chairman Ladan Shuni who represented the minister
at the inauguration of the new Lafarge cement freight train service
at its plant in Ewekoro, Ogun State. It was disclosed that railage
of cement to major cities in the country is to start within the next
few weeks with a total carrying capacity of 2,700 metric tonnes
weekly, equivalent to 25 trucks on the road.
NRC managing director Adeseyi Sijuwade used the opportunity to
announce that 20 tankcars are to be delivered to the railway from
the Peoples Republic of China during October, to improve capacity
for moving petroleum products.
DANGOTE GROUP PLANS RAIL CONNECTIONS IN NIGERIA Dangote Cement Terminal managing director in Lagos Akin
Adesokan is quoted saying the group intends to construct lines
connecting all its cement factories to the Nigerian national rail
system, to reduce the cost of transporting its products. Dangote
envisages establishing an international freight system to boost the
ZIMBABW
E
MOZAMBIQUEMALA
WI
ZAMBIA
Beira
Dondo
Inhamitanga
Manica
Mutare
To Harare
Caia
Vila de Sena
Marromeu
Mocuba
Nacala
Monapo
LumboNampula
Cuamba
Entre LagosNkaya
Moatize
Chiromo
Mutarara
Blantyre
Tete
Lichinga
Lilongwe
Chipata
Quelimane
Indian Ocean
Cabora Bassa Dam
Zambesi River
TANZANIA
Lake
Ma
law
i
1500 300 450
Km
Morrumbala
22 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
AFRICA UPDATE
Gautrain Turnout Assembly
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www.voestalpine.com/vaesa
contributions. Of the 100% revenue generated by the company,
67% of the total goes into salaries with the reminder going into
fuel procurements to sustain the company’s operations, leaving
the company unable to meet debt obligations to various creditors,
which threatens its existence.”
The lack of sustainable recapitalisation of Tazara has led to
the company’s haulage capacity declining from a capacity of
1.2m tonnes during 1986/1987 to a “paltry” 383,055 tonnes
in 2008/2009 although there has been a slight improvement to
522,966 tonnes in 2009/2010 and 533,964 tonnes in 2010/2011.
Tazara has appealed to all unionised staff to resume work
immediately and be assured that everything possible is being done
to ensure that issues raised are speedily addressed, “if they are
within management ability.”
In the words of a contemporary press report: “the predicament at
Tazara is despite the concerted efforts and constant injection of
capital by China - in excess of $40 million since 2010. Tazara is
key to Zambia’s mining industry as companies in the sector rely
on its for exports of copper-related products to Europe and other
markets beyond Africa through the Dar es salaam port in Tanzania
after railage over 1,860km from Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia.”
ZAMBIARAILWAY SYSTEMS OF ZAMBIA (RSZ) INVESTMENTAccording to Railway Systems of Zambia (RSZ) chief executive
offi cer Benjamin Even, the company’s investment in Zambia
since 2004 has reached about $US50 million. “Our investment is
continuing as planned and if new policies are implemented, the
pace of investments will be increased,” he says. “The rail sector
in Zambia has been facing some major challenges for some time.
The government of Zambia must honour the concession agreement
for the sake of the Zambian economy and RSZ employees, and
should support our sector with implementation of transport
policies which will make the railways more competitive in order to
shift traffi c from road to rail. These are mainly refl ected in the road
levy refunds, support towards security and road regulations to be
enforced such as weight limitations and toll gates,” Even says.
The company is facing challenges “such as huge outstanding
debts from neighbouring countries’ railways which are estimated
at $6 million and about $5 million of road levy paid which has
never been refunded.” Vandalism, he says, “has continued to
haunt the company. Addressing such matters will benefi t us all as
opposed to creating a wrong impression in the public which could
Wednesday, we hold meetings with these utility companies to fi nd
a way forward. But the companies are saying they don’t have the
resources and materials to have their properties removed”.
SWAZILANDNEW TFR ROUTE THROUGH SWAZILANDThe envisaged new line into Swaziland from Lothair, currently
the endpoint of a branch from Ermelo in South Africa’s
Mpumalanga, would assist Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) by providing
an alternative route for general freight between Ermelo and
Richards Bay. A feasibility study is in progress. An environmental-
impact assessment (EIA) will begin once the feasibility study is
completed. Line construction will be the next step after that,
probably in about 18 months’ time, and this is expected to take three
to four years. The diversion would have the effect of increasing coal
capacity on the heavy-haul line to Richard’s Bay. At present this
falls short of that available at the coal terminal by a considerable
margin.
TAZARATAZARA TROUBLES SPELLED OUTThe Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara), a joint venture
between the two countries, urgently needs about $US770 million to
sustain its operations and meet freight and passenger requirements.
The prolonged strike by more than 2,000 workers over improved
conditions of service and wages has severely hampered operations.
Tazara managing director Dr Akashambatwa Mbikusita says the
government of Zambia should consider allocating funding “in the
fuller context of appreciating that Tazara is critical for the survival
of the Zambian economy.” It is envisaged that Tazara would further
be able to source investment capital from lending institutions.
Tazara, Mbikusita says, “needs to redress the abnormal situation
under which authorised share capital is less than capital
MO
ZA
MB
IQU
EREPUBLIC OF
SOUTH AFRICA
PIGGS PEAK
MANANGA
TSHANENI
MHLUME MHLUME
SIMUNYE
MILL
MLAWULA
SITEKI
MANZINI
LUBHUKU
PHUZUMOYA
SIDVOKODVO
MATSAPHA
SIPHOCO
MALOYO
MGWILI
KADAKE Hhohho
Lubombo
Shiselweni
HLATIKULUBIG BEND
NTSOKO
LAVUMISA
to Lothair
MPAKA
EHLANEMBABANE
SWAZILAND
Kilometres
0 10 20 30 40 50
N
Ifakara station on the Tanzania-Zambia Railway (Tazara).
Photo: Manuel Hetzel.
24 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
AFRICA UPDATE
Specialists and leading supplier of maintenance, repair, upgrade and manufacturing services in Southern Africa
for AC, DC and diesel-electric units.
LOCOMOTIVE BUSINESS
Tel: +27 (0)12 391 1304 Fax: +27 (0)12 391 1371 Email: [email protected]
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Niamey and Burkina Faso’s Ouagadougou, from where an existing
line continues back to the coast.
According to a joint statement released in Niger, “A roadmap will
be drawn up soon in order to secure fi nancing for this important
regional economic integration project and allow for construction to
begin in 2014.”
lead to major risk for this concession; this was observed in other
railway concessions and companies which have failed recently in
the region.”
Even adds, “money is not easy to come by but is a direct result of
hard work and responsibility of each and every employee of the
company towards its targets, assets and image. We all want more,
but without this, it will never come. Our role is to work hard and plan
while the government should support us with the right policies.”
Referring to media reports about sub-contracted employees in
Ndola, Even and the union president clarifi ed that these are not
employees of RSZ. They were engaged by a contractor working for
the company. “For the record, internal investigation has revealed
that contrary to the report, this contractor is paid well above
the government stipulated minimum wage per employee on a
monthly basis. Invoices and payments could be presented to
the relevant authorities upon request. It is only a pity that some
individuals are taking advantage of the current political situation
for various reasons,” Even says.
WEST AFRICARAILWAY TO LINK WEST AFRICAN STATES On 31 November 2011, Niger, Côte d’Ivoire, Benin and Burkina
Faso agreed to a 2,700km new rail construction project to link the
four countries. Two of the region’s main ports – Cotonou in Benin
and Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire – are to be the endpoints, with rails
running the full length of Benin, continuing through Niger’s capital
Sales and rentals of locomotives, trackmobiles and other rolling stock.Repair/reconditioning of locomotives, trackmobiles and other rolling stock in our Pretoria West based workshop and on site.Repair/reconditioning of all locomotive and other rolling stock equipment (engines, bogies, turbo chargers, air and vacuum brake valves and auxiliaries, compressors and exhausters, couplers and draft gears etc.)Service exchange components for most major items on present day locomotives, which include traction motors, bogies, power packs, expressors and main generators etc.A full range of spare parts for locomotives and rail wagons, most of which are available off the shelf.Sales and rentals of electrical, mechanical and air jacking systems for the lifting of locomotives and rail wagons etc, on site.Operation and control of entire rail systems ranging from the maintenance of customers own locomotives and rolling stock to the control and transport of their products and the maintenance of their railway tracks and switch/signalling systems.
SPECIALIZING IN THE RAILROAD INDUSTRY
OPERATIONS &
WORKSHOP
No1 Frikkie Meyer RoadPretoria WestGautengRepublic of South Africa
Tel: +27 12 307-7251Fax: +27 12 [email protected]
HEAD OFFICE
P.O Box 40178Cleveland2022Republic of South Africa
93 Whitworth RoadHeriotdale, JohannesburgGautengRepublic of South Africa
Tel: +27 11 626-3516Fax: +27 11 626-1171/[email protected]
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LomeCotonou
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N
AFRICA UPDATE
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industry, a perennial source of dissatisfaction with rail service, one
from which kudos are praise indeed.
It’s an impressive-sounding strategy with an inspiring ring to it,
though it isn’t altogether new. To tell the truth, it’s been promised
before. Spoornet senior strategy manager Deidre Strydom - to
take one example - conceded at a 2006 Pretoria motor industry
conference that rail freight services between Gauteng and the
harbours were ‘’erratic at best’’, obliging manufacturers to rely
on road transport. “We are one of the few countries that has not
fully embraced the concept of scheduled rail services,” she was
reported saying. Commenting on this at the time, the editor of
Railways Africa pointed out: “Successive Spoornet top managers
have been promising reliable, ‘predictable’, scheduled freight rail
service for at least 15 years. More recently, Siyabonga Gama – then
Spoornet CEO – was talking in 2005 about a fi ve-year plan, and
an aim of becoming a predictable, fully-scheduled railway.”
COAL TO EAST LONDON & COEGAAccording to Strategic Natural Resources’ CEO David Nel, a
memorandum of understanding has been signed with a private rail
entity to provide rolling stock and move export coal to the ports of
East London and Ngqura (Coega near Port Elizabeth). Open-cast
production is to start in February 2012 and underground work in
April. It is expected that the fi rst shipments of higher-grade coal
will take place by June.
TRANSNET MISSION STATEMENTFrom the Transnet annual report -“The mandate of Transnet is to assist in
lowering the cost of doing business in
South Africa, enabling economic growth and
ensuring security of supply through providing
appropriate port, rail and pipeline infrastructure in a cost-effective
and effi cient manner, within acceptable benchmarks. Transnet’s
mandate and strategic objectives are aligned with government’s
SIGNALLING AT NGQURA A R17 million fast-track signalling contract for the marshalling
yard at the Port of Ngqura in the Coega industrial development
zone near Port Elizabeth was completed by Actom Signalling
recently. The new equipment has been installed to control the
entrance and exit of trains in the marshalling yard at Coega station
and to upgrade the communication systems between existing
stations in the vicinity of the port.
The work comprised the supply and installation of new control
equipment, including Mark1C interlocking, in a new relay room
at the relocated Coega station, as well as supplying and installing
fail-safe data transmission (FSDT) connections over fi bre-optic
cable between Coega and fi ve other stations along a 60km
section of the De Aar-Port Elizabeth main-line. In addition, the
fi ve stations were equipped with modern axle-counters, and the
old remote-control system was replaced with the state-of-the-
art Transnet CS90 system.
The fi ve stations involved were Grassridge, Barkly Bridge and Addo
on the De Aar side of Coega, together with Aloes and Swartkops
on the Port Elizabeth side.
Explaining the portion of the contract involving the installation of
the FSDT system, Actom Signalling’s contracts manager Gerrie
Coetzer said it also included linking up to the central traffi c
control (CTC) system located at Port Elizabeth station.
”Our contract required installation of the FSDT system between
the stations to provide more reliable communication between
stations. This required migrating the blockworking between stations
off the old coaxial copper cable onto fi bre-optic cable,” he added.
COAL, ORE, MANGANESE RAILINGS IMPROVEThroughputs of coal, iron ore and manganese export traffi c, to
Richards Bay, Saldanha and Port Elizabeth respectively, have
all increased in recent months, according to the South African
Chamber of Mines. Though it is understood that actual fi gures
are not exactly startling, the improvement is to be welcomed,
following years of complaint from the mining sector about railway
shortcomings. In particular, weekly coal deliveries to the Richards
Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) in September constituted a record.
Government favouring small coal producing entities with an
empowerment rating is a limiting factor, observers suggest. These
load the commodity into rail wagons using slow, front-end loaders,
compared with bigger suppliers with sophisticated, fast equipment.
And Transnet Freight Rail’s strategy calls for minimum wagon
down-time in sidings.
SCHEDULED FREIGHT TRAINS At Transnet Freight Rail, trains running to schedule are the current
fl avour of the moment. The new scheme of things was implemented
several months back and results to date are encouraging. So
much so there’ve been pats on the back from parts of the mining
Transnet freight train eastbound from Mafi keng at Chidima near Koster on
6 March 2010 behind 34 123 and 34 019. Photo: Eugene Armer.
30 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
RAIL NEWSSOUTH AFRICAN
SA RAIL NEWS
New Growth Path (NGP) and the Statement of Strategic Intent (SSI)
issued by the minister of public enterprises. “
Our vision “Transnet is a focused freight transport company, delivering
integrated, effi cient, safe, reliable and cost-effective services to
promote economic growth in South Africa. This is achieved by
increasing the company’s market share, improving productivity and
profi tability and by providing appropriate capacity to customers
ahead of demand, within affordability limits.
“Transnet will meet customer demand for reliable freight transport
and handling services through:
• Fully integrating and maximising the use of our unique set of
assets
• Continuously driving cost effi ciencies
• A demonstrated concern for sustainability in everything we do
• To enable the competitiveness, growth and development of the
South African economy by delivering reliable freight transport
and handling services that satisfy customer demand.”
Our mission “The Company is reliable, trustworthy, responsive and safe; its
employees are committed, safety-conscious, ethical, disciplined
and results-orientated. “
TRANSNET FREIGHT RAIL VERTICAL SEPARATION From offi cial Transnet published results, 26 Oct 2011:“Transnet understands that the proposal of vertically separating
Transnet Freight Rail has been put on hold by the Department of
Transport”.
COSATU ANNOUNCES METRORAIL STRIKE ACTION During November, the Congress of South African Trade Unions
(Cosatu) reiterated intentions to strike, to draw governmental
attention to declining standards in suburban train services in the
city. Cosatu’s Western Cape provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich
said there have been many promises over the years but things are
not getting better. Government he complains has neglected the
railway in Cape Town; the rolling stock is over three decades old
and inadequate, with only 85 trainsets in use. There should be at
least 120 sets, he says.
According to a Cosatu statement, the protest action was to be held
on 6 December 2011 between 13:30 and 15:30 at the Metrorail
offi ces in the city. Cosatu members and supporters would be
coming to raise their concerns about public transport from the
Cape Flats and Southern Suburbs. Workers employed by Metrorail
Southbound 110-wagon coal train at Bloemhof behind six class 6E1 locos.
Photo: Jacque Wepener, November 2011.
www.railwaysafrica.com
These activities, Hambili says, form part of Sara’s role in promoting
a “rail renaissance” in the SADC.
and Golden Arrow Bus Services (Cape Town’s metropolitan bus
operator) would not participate as they had to transport other
workers to and from the protest. “Both companies and workers
stand to gain from an improved transport system,” Cosatu says.
Arrangements were to be made “at company level” for workers
to participate in the protest. This meant that in some instances
employees would work in the time lost and in other instances
companies would contribute to make up lost wages. “The protest
would focus on both Metrorail and the City of Cape Town’s
inability to provide proper transport”.
SARA CONFERENCETransnet Freight Rail (TFR) sponsored the fi rst conference held
by the Southern African Rail Association (Sara) which took place
in Midrand from 1-3 November 2011. A technical exhibition
was hosted at the same time. The aim of the conference was
to raise awareness among stakeholders of the Southern Africa
Development Community (SADC) rail network and to highlight
new initiatives in improving services and promoting the integration
of railway systems in the region.
Speaking at a media briefi ng in advance of the conference, Sara
president and TransNamib (Namibian rail authority) CEO Titus
Haimbili said that signifi cant focus was to be placed on developing
and integrating cross-border public/private partnerships.
Sara is lobbying SADC countries to implement an integrated
electronic customs system wherever possible, to facilitate the
operation and speed of trans-frontier trains. The association says it
has successfully lobbied SADC member states to waive fuel levies
paid by railways, and create “railway funds” to help improve rail
infrastructure and operations across the region.Siyabonga Gama.
“GOVERNMENTS MUST FUND RAILWAYS”Speaking at a media briefi ng in advance of the Southern African Rail Association (Sara) November conference, the association’s executive director Bernard Dzawanda said governments should take responsibility for maintaining rail infrastructure “so that we can redirect our resources to operations”. His comments were echoed by Transnet Freight Rail CEO Siyabonga Gama, who said most railways in the world depend on their governments for investment. “We need to get beyond political support - we need economic support,” Gama said.
The funding issue was prominent on the conference agenda.
32 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
SA RAIL NEWS
Tel: +27 11 794-2910 | Fax: +27 11 794-3560 | Email: [email protected] | Web: www.yalejhb.co.za
Specialist producers of a range of cast products for the rail industry from locomotive, wagon and passenger
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FOUNDRY BUSINESS
Tel: +27 (0)12 391 1304 Fax: +27 (0)12 391 1371 Email: [email protected]
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Africa in responding to climate change amidst its other challenges
like poverty, inequality, underdevelopment - and its leadership role
among developing countries.
Speaking in support of the Climate Train initiative, Prasa Group
CEO Lucky Montana noted the visible impact of climate change
through weather extremes already being experienced in South
Africa and the role played by Prasa in the fi ght against climate
change; “We as Prasa accept our responsibility to contribute to
efforts to reduce SA’s carbon footprint and to be good corporate
citizens. We are pleased to be able to use our train as the vehicle
to facilitate that conversation in collaboration with the partners,
as we prepare for hosting COP17 in South Africa” Montana added.
PRASA: “GREEN” TRANSPORT DURING COP17:From an offi cial statement by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) :Prasa will provide the following services during the COP17
conference:
• Autopax, Prasa’s long-distance bus company, will provide
transport for conference delegates during the event in Durban.
• Two special trains will be run to Durban for community
organisations and delegates attending the conference.
PRASA PROJECTS IN SUPPORT OF COP17:From an offi cial statement by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) :Prasa is developing its own climate change/green policy and
strategy framework which will be enhanced by the COP17 outcomes
on all government departments and state-owned entities. Prasa’s
climate change policy/strategy will be applicable to all its operating
entities as monitored by the Prasa corporate offi ce.
TRANSNET PENSIONS DEBACLEIn terms of the Transnet Second Defi ned Pension Fund provisions,
the parastatal’s old-timers have been getting a 2% increase in
their pensions every year. This doesn’t look all that bad, now that
infl ation is down to under 6%, but it isn’t good by any means –
and anyway, offi cial infl ation takes no account of basic things
like electricity and other municipal charges. How is a pensioner
expected to meet a 25% increase in the cost of electricity, for
instance?
Complaints and discussions about Transnet pensions have been
going on for years (the interests of about 80,000 people are said
to be at stake). The latest round took place in the national assembly
at mid-November A year ago, in November 2010, the national
assembly adopted a resolution calling on the parastatal to inject
R1.96bn into the fund. Both fi nance minister Pravin Gordhan and
public enterprises minister Malusi Gigaba are said to have endorsed
the recommendation, but nothing was done.
Transnet director Peter Moyo, who chairs the pension fund’s board
of trustees, indicated that the company would discuss the matter
at a 24 November 2011 board meeting. He was to report back on
25 November, the last day on which parliamentary committees
were scheduled to meet in 2011.
CLIMATE TRAINFrom an offi cial statement by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) :The Climate Train is a precursor to the 17th Conference of the
Parties (COP) meeting in Durban, hosted by South Africa, which
aims to raise awareness around the important issue of climate
change. The meeting is crucial for developing countries like South
SA RAIL NEWS
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“The consist was as follows:-
• Locomotive (class 6E1 no E1321)
• Baggage van 21045 (SM - S Meyl colours)
• Sitter 25806 (SM)
• Sitter 26707 (SM)
• Conference coach 36501 (PC - Premier Classe colours)
• Kitchen car 420 (PC)
• Dining car 419 (PC)
• Lounge Car 802 (PC)
• Sleeper 32134 (PC)
• Sleeper 32138 (PC)
• Sleeper 32132 (PC)
• Generator car 20506 (PC)
“There were climate change displays in coaches 25806, 26707 and
36501. The train remained in Durban for the rest of the week and
was open to the public between 08:00 and 17:00.
“The train departed Durban at 20:00 on Saturday, 10 December
2011 for Johannesburg.”
Prasa’s projects in support of COP17 include:
• The R100 billion rolling stock renewal programme (the
purchasing of new trains) which embodies international
specifi cations for green and energy-effi cient technology,
including green requirements for manufacturing, maintenance
and spares for the new fl eet.
• Prasa’s bus operations, through Autopax, have recently
purchased 500 new buses with energy savings and emission
control specifi cations/standards. Autopax is introducing
measures on all its bus fl eet to optimise and monitor energy
savings.
• Prasa is in the process of updating its norms, guidelines and
standards for all infrastructure, station facilities/structure
construction and other works to include green designs and
green SABS materials usage, eg maximum natural light in
station designs.
• Prasa’s property entity, Prasa Cres, has launched a project to
retrofi t all light fi ttings and globes in major stations with energy-
saving fi ttings and globes. It is investigating a pilot project for
the testing of solar panels at major stations, to be rolled out to
the entire network, to augment power supply.
According to Prasa Group CEO Lucky Montana: “We will continue
to seek ways to reduce our carbon footprint in our operations and
we are pleased to be part of the change we want to see in the
world. As a carrier of 2.4 million passengers per day nationally,
we are the only public transport provider that has the capacity to
help change our carbon footprint as a country. We will therefore
continue to encourage people to use public transport such as
trains as responsible citizens protecting the environment”.
CLIMATE TRAIN DETAILFrom Ashley Peter:“South Africa’s Climate Train spent the past month wending its
way from Cape Town via Johannesburg and elsewhere to Durban
for the COP17 conference.
Climate Train at Durban, November 2011.
36 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
SA RAIL NEWS
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The potential gaps that needed to be closed to provide an Eastern Cape-Natal through route were all approximately 100km as the crow fl ies – but the operative word is “fl ies”. The terrain is hardly what one would call railway-friendly. Heavy engineering work would have been needed.
Fast-forward to November 2011 and an appeal by Independent Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa for a railway from Durban through the Eastern Cape. Replying in parliament, President Jacob Zuma agreed the N2 through the region was highly dangerous. There are plans, he was quoted saying, to build a railway, which would stimulate economic activity.
[The main problem of course is still the diffi cult topography. Constructing a line would be extremely costly, even if tunnelling were kept to a minimum. Without extensive tunnelling however, train speeds would be too low to attract much in the way of passengers – and it seems doubtful that goods trains crawling up hill and down dale would supplant trucks on the road meaningfully, as Holomisa hopes. – Editor Railways Africa ]
KZN-EAST LONDON DIRECT RAIL MOOTEDOn 29 August 1906, a 278km line was opened from Sterkstroom (272km from East London on the main-line to the interior) to Maclear. In 1916, a 358km line entered service from Amabele, 76km from East London (also on the main-line) to Umtata, now Mthatha. Both lines ran in a generally northerly direction, with hopes of being continued one day into Natal.
Then on 3 November 1924, a line was completed 266km southwards from Pietermaritzburg to Kokstad. This had similar but more defi nite intentions, being known optimistically as the “Cape-Natal line”. On the following day, a branch from Franklin, 41km north of Kokstad, was opened westwards to Matatiele, 302km from Pietermaritzburg.
There were no further developments, unless you count the ending of service on the Maclear, Matatiele and Kokstad lines between 2001 and 2010. The Umtata line was also closed of course, but has since been reopened.
Completing the missing link between Mthatha and Kokstad would only be a very small beginning. The East London-Mthatha and Pietermaritzburg-Kokstad lines
are anything but ruler-straight. This map of the latter by Bruno Martin comes from Boon Boonzaaier’s Tracks across the veld (2008).
38 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
SA RAIL NEWS
Think Coogar®
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He found it diffi cult to understand continuing recommendations
by consultants who should know that widening roads does not
solve problems – according to extensive research worldwide -
but simply attracts more traffi c. Pointing to the temptation to tell
clients what they wished to hear, Cronin said he had a problem
with management agencies appointing their own consultants
to do feasibility and impact studies. Referring specifi cally to
Gautrain, which is planned as an intercity service, he said
most journeys undertaken in Gauteng, according to studies,
are intra-city, not intercity. In the future, plans will be wanted
which offer maximum benefi t to the community as a whole.
TRANSNET ADVANCES CAPEX PROGRAMMEWith the aim of improving rail and port effi ciency, Transnet has
brought forward R6.1 billion’s worth of the R110.6 billion capital
expenditure (capex) in its fi ve-year rolling budget. This investment
will now be made within the coming two years.
The accelerated portion includes a R3.6 billion procurement of 95
electric locomotives and 43 diesel locomotives, a R1.3 billion plan
to acquire port equipment for the Durban Container Terminal’s
(DCT’s) Pier 2, and a R1.1 billion project to raise container handling
capacity at the Eastern Cape port of Ngqura, from 250,000 twenty-
foot equivalent unit (TEUs) to 2 million.
Though Transnet’s actual capex spend in the six months to 30
September 2011 fell 6.9% to R9.5 billion (compared with R10.2
billion in the fi rst half of 2010) CEO Brian Molefe says plans are
in place to meet the R25.8 billion investment budget by 31 March
2012. Transnet needs to raise just under R33 billion over the next
fi ve years to fund its R110 billion capex plan, the balance to be
funded through the company’s own cash resources.
During the current fi nancial year, Transnet Freight Rail (TFR)
expects to take delivery of 86 new locomotives and 1,509 new
wagons. A total of 196 locomotives is to be introduced in 2013
and 106 in 2014, in line with the accelerated acquisition of 138
locomotives for TFR’s general freight business (GFB). During the
interim period, the GFB recorded a 6.3% increase in volumes to
39.1 million tons. Container volumes rose 22.3% from 296,000
TEUs to 362,000.
PUBLIC ENTERPRISES WANTS TO TREBLE TRANSNET CAPEX According to South Africa’s Public Enterprises Minister Malusi
Gigaba, Transnet, Eskom and the Industrial Development
COSATU WANTS LONGER STATIONSSouth African Congress of Trade Unions (Cosatu) Western
Cape provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich has suggested the
lengthening of platforms at southern suburbs stations in Cape
Town, to accommodate longer trains. The existing platforms south
of Salt River only take sets with a maximum of eight coaches.
Ehrenreich thinks this number should be increased to 14, so
platform extensions in the region of 120 metres are involved.
[At many of the 25 stations, like Observatory, Mowbray, Rosebank,
Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, etc, roads in a number of
places would need to be closed to make room for platform
extensions - but what happens in cases where these provide the
sole access to adjoining properties? – editor Railways Africa
PRASA FLEET RENEWALProminent advertisements placed in the press early in November
by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) advised
that a briefi ng session was to take place in Johannesburg on 22
November in connection with the planned acquisition of new
rolling stock. “This announcement is not a request for proposals,
is not a request for Expressions of Interest, does not constitute
any form of offer, nor any form of commitment or obligation to
any person. This BBBEE Engagement forms part of an information
gathering process in support of a transparent process, and must
be understood as a prelude to the actual procurement of the
rolling stock, which will be conducted in accordance with the
laws of South Africa under the South African Constitution and
the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) which ensure a fair,
open transparent and competitive process, that ensures value for
money for government. Attendance at this briefi ng session is at
the discretion and for the cost of the participants.
“Prasa reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion at any
time to amend, deviate from, discontinue, suspend, postpone or
terminate this BBBEE Engagement process without incurring any
liability whatsoever to any interested party. Prasa will however
advertise any changes to this BBBEE Engagement process through
its website”.
GAUTRAIN INVESTIGATING PROBLEMSAccording to the Gautrain Management Agency’s Dr Barbara
Jensen, electrical faults that disrupted passenger service recently
are being investigated. There were three instances of train
stoppage in the last week of October, while on 1 November, no
trains ran between Sandton and Rosebank for several hours.
Jensen gave an assurance that the agency will report fully on the
fi ndings of their investiagations in due course, including causes
determined, means taken to avoid repetition, and future action.
She repeated earlier apologies to anyone inconvenienced by the
hitches in service.
CRONIN ON GAUTRAIN & TOLL ROADSInterviewed in the press, on radio and on television, deputy
minister of transport Jeremy Cronin said South African National
Roads Agency (Sanral) chief executive Nazir Alli and Gautrain
Management Agency CEO Jack van der Merwe are “technically
highly competent and able to present a good case”, but suggested
that overall transport policy and planning is beginning to look like
the tail starting to wag the dog. Obviously one has to listen to the
engineers, but one should also ask questions, he said.
Southbound container train near Virginia behind class 6E1 locos 1415 and
1167. A November photo by Jacque Wepener.
40 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
SA RAIL NEWS
FROM RHODESFIELD, GAUTRAIN STILL ONLY GOES WEST Businessman Alfonso Niemand has written to the Competitions
Commission, asking for an investigation into Gautrain’s inexplicable
rule that passengers boarding at Rhodesfi eld, 800 metres from
the airport, are physically denied the opportunity to reach O R
Tambo except by travelling westwards (ie away from the airport)
fi rst. He complains that nobody at Gautrain offers any explanation
for this extraordinary situation and wonders if there is some sort
of anti-competitive collusion between Gautrain and the airports
company, possibly to do with parking.
Corporation (IDC) working together to fi nd new ways of borrowing
more money, over a shorter period of time. This would help
speed up capacity increases on the coal, iron-ore and general
freight rail lines, Transnet Freight Rail CEO Siyabonga Gama said
at the Southern Africa Railways Association (Sara) conference in
Johannesburg. One possibility is that the IDC could buy locomotives
and lease them to Transnet, possibly selling them to the group
over time. Gigaba says he would like to see Transnet’s capital
budget doubled or even trebled. “The capex programme we
are implementing now has constraints as it doesn’t create new
capacity to the extent that we would want it to,” he said
FASTER SERVICE, LONGER DISTANCES TRAVELLEDA phenomenon discovered decades ago in England has been
imported to Johannesburg – by Gautrain. It is a sort of extension
of Murphy’s Law, in terms of which the faster the commuter train
services provided, the further people are encouraged to live from
their places of work. Press reports talk (we suspect prematurely)
of children resident on the East Rand attending schools or
university in Pretoria. And their parents shopping at Pretoria’s
Menlyn Mall.
[Well-to-do people parking at a Gautrain station, training to Hatfi eld,
then taking a feeder bus to Menlyn and returning home the same
convoluted way, loaded with parcels? No way. – Editor Railways
Africa]
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Rhodesfi eld station is an interchange between Gautrain and Metrorail.
Despite the proximity of the airport, on Gautrain, one can only go west.
SA RAIL NEWS
Umgeni Steam Railway (USR), KwaZulu-NatalLate in 2011, Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) closed the Inchanga line
used by USR due to poor track conditions. Some 600 replacement
sleepers had to be secured and fi nanced out of the club’s coffers.
Fortunately the line was passed as fi t for use before the year-end
holidays, when the club’s North British class 3BR no 1486 Maureen
was in service. In 2012, she will be 100 years old.
Work continues on class 19D 4-8-2 no 2685. It hoped to have her
up and running again, in the not too distant future. In November
it was reported that all fl exible stay caps in the fi rebox had been
removed and the stays removed. The cross-stays were also being
removed, as well as many rivets that were in poor condition.
On the rolling stock front, repairs to coach no 7390 are well
under way. The malthoid roofi ng sheets have been removed and
are to be replaced with a superior material bearing a ten-year
guarantee. The side cladding too is being replaced with stronger
material.
Reefsteamers, GermistonDuring the holiday season at the year-end the class 15F no 3046
was in use. The run on 16 December was to be the last main-line
trip for Reefsteamers’ driver Frans van Dyk before retiring from
footplate duties. With problems in his legs and his back, he can no
longer sit for long periods and cannot handle the physical stress
of main-line driving without distraction. So, Frans has graciously
chosen to call it a day but not before sitting in the right-hand
seat, for his last run on the footplate of no 3046 Janine, named
after his grand-daughter.
The class 12AR 4-8-2 loco no 1535 Susan has been out of use
latterly owing to the inner injector currents wearing out.
Some 142 people were expected on a 14-coach Reefsteamers’
New Year holiday train from Germiston on the evening of 26
December for a leisurely 16-hour trip to the KwaZulu-Natal South
Coast, returning on Sunday 1 January. The Margate Pipes and
Drums are to pipe the train (headed by two class 37s) into Port
Shepstone station with a traditional rousing Scottish welcome.
Class 12AR no 1535 of Reefsteamers has been out of action owing to the
inner injector currents wearing out. Photo: Paul Ash.
Friends of The Rail’s Nathan Berelowitz (second from left) was certifi cated as
a private steam driver in late 2011. Photo: FoTR.
Umgeni Steam Railways’ mainstay North British-built class 3BR no 1486
will be 100 years old in 2012. Photo: Ryan Fincham.
The club’s class 19D no 2650
is to return to service in the
early part of 2012. During the
year-end holiday season, North
British class 24 no 3664 was in
use on the trains.
Friends of The Rail, Pretoria
RAILWAY HERITAGE
42 Railways Africa November 2011 www.railwaysafrica.com
Preservation is A Preservation is A Vital Part of The Picture Vital Part of The Picture
By John BatwellBy John Batwell
Sanrasm, KrugersdorpMajor efforts have been made with A-28 diner no 229 Shashi.
The entire fl oor is suffering from wet rot and will be removed
and replaced. About a third had been done by the year-end.
The work involved removing the tables, seats etc - a big job in
itself. The ceiling also suffered from water damage and all the
hardboard panels will need to be replaced as will some of the
ceiling boards. All the lights have gone and will need to be rewired
and replaced, and the wall panels also need to be renewed. The
textured material is Rexine, which it is hoped can be replaced
with similar blue material to match the seats, which all need
to be re-covered. An important task has been the renewal of
several metres of teak waistrail which had rotted badly.
Replacement teak was sourced from scrapped coach bodies
and sent to SA Timber who did the profi ling to match the rest.
Colin Jenkins, an expert coachbuilder with 40 years of wooden
coaching restoration, much of it on the Severn Valley Railway in the
United Kingdom, has been supervising this and other jobs.
Second-class E-13 no 2123 has had its roof remalthoided and
painted. One side of the exterior has been patched and repainted.
A new kit of parts for a set of droplights has arrived and will be
assembled and fi tted shortly. Considerable effort went into trying
to match the original paint colour. This coach has some major
problems in one end and the bottom stringer has rot and damage
on one side.
Private saloon no 15 Wesvaal has had much of the roof timbering
replaced including one complete side of the clerestory. The two
different construction methods employed along the whole length
of the coach is making replacement of timber a long job. Half
the malthoid has been replaced.
A-18 single diner no 161 Phantom Pass had all the old malthoid
removed and replaced, but only after much rotten wood had
been removed and new timber fi tted.
Sandstone Heritage Trust, Orange Free StateA steam gala entitled Kalahari Sunrise is to take place from 23
March to 1 April 2012. For more details of this event at the Eastern
Free State farm railway, contact: [email protected]
Zimbabwe Steam NewsClass 15 no 395 is earmarked to haul NRZ’s next steam Leisure Day
trip, scheduled for 12 February.
Happier days at SANRASM – A-18 type diner “Phantom Pass” hired out for
a thematic wedding reception. Photo: J Batwell.
www.railwaysafrica.com
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