City of Cape Town explains R123 billion (over 30 years) plan to manage passenger rail

Lester Kiewit interviews Roberto Quintas, the City of Cape Town's Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility.

Listen below.

Passenger rail services in South Africa have been in steady decline under the management of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) over the past decade, with passenger trips plummeting by 92% since the 2012/13 financial year. 

Despite years of efforts by the City of Cape Town to collaborate with PRASA on rehabilitating the rail network, progress has been hampered by various challenges.

RELATED: City of Cape Town to manage rail network? 'It will be a huge boost for the city!' – GroundUp

In a significant development, the City of Cape Town is now set to finalise comprehensive business plans by mid-2025 to take over the management of passenger rail services in the metro.

This follows the City Council's adoption of a detailed Rail Feasibility Study, which outlines three potential ownership models for Cape Town's passenger rail service:

• The City assumes full ownership, operation, and maintenance of the rail network, stations, and trains, absorbing PRASA personnel.
• The City owns all rail-related assets and the concession for the rail network and stations, taking responsibility for train operations and maintenance, while the concessionaire absorbs PRASA personnel.
• The City procures a large-scale integrated solution through a comprehensive concession model.

"The feasbility study was extremely extensive up to this point... almost two and a half years in the making."

- Roberto Quintas, Urban Mobility - City of Cape Town

The estimated cost for the City of Cape Town to implement one of these models over a 30-year period is a hefty R123 billion, says Quintas.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.