Question NW3639 to the Minister of Transport
22 November 2023 - NW3639
Hunsinger, Mr CH to ask the Minister of Transport
(1)With regard to safety at the sites of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) in the Western Cape, what total number of the (a) overhead bridges and (b) underground passenger tunnels on the PRASA rail network were (i) inspected and (ii) deemed unsafe in 2022; (2) what is the estimated cost of repairing all (a) overhead bridges and (b) underground passenger tunnels on the PRASA rail network that are currently in need of repair in order to be deemed safe?
Reply:
1. (a) In the Western Cape, PRASA has a total of 61 Overhead Bridges (excluding the Central Line, which is currently being recovered).
- 61 bridges were inspected in 2022,
- 6 bridges where recommended the rehabilitation due to their poor condition.
(b) In the Western Cape, PRASA has a total of 38 underground passenger tunnels.
(i) 38 underground passenger tunnels have been inspected,
(ii) 4 underground tunnels are not functional and deemed unsafe.
(2) The estimated cost of:
(a) rehabilitating 6 bridges is R59 million,
(b) repairing underground tunnels is R75,000 per tunnel and R300,000 for the four (4) underground tunnels that are currently non-functional. In the 2023/24 financial year, to date, PRASA has occurred costs of R500,000 in repairing underground tunnels. Vandalism of underground tunnels generally lasts about three to four months and then needs to be repaired again. Each month, there are two to three underground tunnels that PRASA has to repair due to repeated vandalism.