The families, from informal settlements, are currently being relocated to Bardale, an open piece of land in Mfuleni.

The first phase of the Bardale housing project recently kicked off, with 1 400 families being relocated to the land. Previously these families lived along the railway line between Nolungile station and Nonkqubela station.

The mass relocation comes after a court battle between Metrorail and the City of Cape Town.

Mr Quintus Welman, City of Cape Town’s project manager for new housing admitted that the City of Cape Town was summoned to court regarding the informal settlers who were living in “life threatening” circumstances.

A press release from Metrorail said the informal settlers were “not only were the informal settlers in immediate danger of the railway line, but the human waste on the rails made maintenance of the railway lines difficult, too”.

According to Lungiswa Bulawa, who has been living next to the railway line for 14 years, two six-year old children have been hit by a train. “We lived right next to the railway line. There is no fencing. There was also many fires,” Bulawa said.

Metrorail and the City of Cape Town came to an agreement without going to court whereby the informal settlers, who are also regarded for the emergency housing program, would be relocated from the railway line. Bardale was identified as the area where the informal settlers would be relocated to. Since 24 April about 50 families were relocated to this area daily.

According to Welman the provincial department of housing allocated R150 million for the particular project.

About 5 500 plots have been made available for the informal settlers across the whole metropole. Others who will benefit include some 400 families have been living at the rail reserves in Somerset Wes, 1 000 families from Mfuleni, 300 families from the Kosovo informal settlement in Guguletu and 300 families from Enkanini in Khayelitsha.

Property ownership will be the responsibility of those who qualify for a housing subsidy.