Excitement on 1st Gautrain trip
2010-06-09 10:19
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Johannesburg
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Johannesburg – Several residents got up before dawn to be among the first Gautrain passengers on Tuesday.
A group of more than 60 people – most of them members of the Facebook group Gautrain Inaugural Breakfast Run – took the ride from Sandton station to OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park to have breakfast at the Wimpy.
Although many of them, just like the Beeld reporters, had problems with the card machine and were unable to make the first train at 05:24, a large group in great spirits took their seats at about 06:00 on one of the trains. The excitement was almost palpable.
"Feel how fast it goes… although, not as fast as a plane," said Sean O'Regan to his children, Acacia, 4, and Thomas (seven months) when the blue and gold train left the underground station. Minutes later it appeared at a speed of 160km/h at the Marlboro station from the tunnel, surrounded by city lights. "Look guys, we're out," said O'Regan.
No traffic
The best part would be later on, riding past the cars stuck in traffic, joked Craig Nicholson, founder of the Facebook group.
"The train will do wonderful things for us. No more driving to OR Tambo, no more looking for parking and flights being missed."
He added that it was good to see so many police on the train.
David Mithi from Diepkloof in Soweto was very excited to test the trains and disappointed that he couldn't buy his Gautrain ticket on Monday already.
"I thought I would be the first guy," he said when the train came to a stop less than 15 minutes later at the airport. From this station passengers used an escalator to reach the terminals.
Bernard Tsenasi from Birch Acres in Kempton Park and his children took the general commuter service from Rhodesfield station to Sandton.
This route, at R21, was considerably cheaper than the R100 for the Sandton-airport single trip.
It was the first train ride for Naledi, 18, and twins Pontsho and Tony, 15.
Normal route
A Gautrain return ticket between Rhodesfield and Sandton plus a day's parking and two bus trips (to one of the stations): R63.50
Petrol for a return trip with a car: About R46
Petrol, wear and tear and insurance cost of return trip with car: About R182
- Above figures with petrol usage of 12km/l with 93 octane lead-free petrol
Petrol, wear and tear and insurance cost was for an average AA tariff of R2.70 per km for a 1 600 cc car.
Road to the airport
A Gautrain return ticket between Sandton and OR Tambo and one day's parking: R229
Petrol for return trip with car plus a day's inside parking at OR Tambo: R177.50
Petrol plus a day's parking under shade nets at OR Tambo: R107
Parking, wear and tear and insurance costs for return trip plus inside parking at OR Tambo: about R301
Petrol, wear and tear, insurance cost plus shaded parking at airport: about R231
- Above figures with petrol usage of 12km/l with 93 octane lead-free petrol. Cost at average AA tariff of R2.70 per kilometre for a 1 600 cc car.