Early days for proposed rail network

2010-09-20 17:24

Cape Town - Current proposals for a high-speed train network include four routes, Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele said on Monday.

In a written reply to a parliamentary question, he said a first order network had been proposed through the National Transport Master Plan (Natmap) process.

"The network is still draft and is subject to refinement. Please note that accepted definition of high-speed trains are those designed for more than 200km/h," he said.

The current proposed high-speed railway network was between Johannesburg and Durban, Johannesburg and Polokwane, Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the Moloto Corridor.

The only feasibility study that had been developed for this network was the Moloto Corridor at R9.3bn.

The Johannesburg to Durban link was being subjected to a pre-feasibility and later a feasibility study, and details regarding this project would be known once the feasibility studies had been completed.

"There is no work that has been done for the other links within the network," Ndebele said.

- SAPA