SARF calls for probe of proposed Joburg-Durban high-speed rail link

The SA Road Federation (SARF) on Wednesday called for a thorough feasibility study on a possible high-speed rail link between Durban and Johannesburg.

Such a service was mooted by Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele during his budget vote debate in the National Assembly last week.

While welcoming the initiative, SARF president Mutshutshu Nxumalo, said it was essential that an unbiased assessment be conducted by experienced and competent transport engineers and economists.

"Although high-speed rail links have proven effective in other parts of the world, they have all been prone to intensive teething problems, and in most cases, considerable cost overruns.

"In addition, planners on the Johannesburg-Durban link will be faced with logistical challenges which are bound to add to the cost of the project," he said.

Not least of these was the fact that a high-speed rail link ran on a wider 1435mm rail gauge as opposed to South Africa's traditional narrow 1067mm gauge.

This meant that not only would new rolling stock have to be purchased, but it would have to be dedicated exclusively to the rail link.

"Secondly, there is the considerable difference in altitude between the two cities to consider."

The link would have to traverse steep inclines in rising from sea level to just under 2000 metres in Johannesburg.

This might prove to be an Achilles heel as the undulating topography would impose severe constraints on vertical and horizontal alignments, all of which would be expensive to remedy.

"And thirdly, for a rail link, either conventional or high-speed, to attract freight business, the materials handling and storage aspects at either end of the line would have to be considerably improved," Nxumalo said.

It was not clear whether the minister was proposing a passenger or a freight movement facility, or both.

"Should it be his intention to relieve the N3 of the excessive heavy freight traffic it now carries, SARF suggests that a dedicated truck route would be far more effective.

"We believe that a high-speed freight rail link with its vastly increased costs would be a much more expensive option, both to construct and to run."

There was a global preference for road over rail freight, primarily because of the greater flexibility, speed and effectiveness it offered.

"We also believe that passenger traffic between the two cities needs to be realistically assessed in light of the fact that most of the world's high-speed passenger trains serve higher population densities than would be the case in South Africa," Nxumalo said.

Sapa

Posted at 09:29AM Apr 22, 2010 by Editor in Market  |  Comments[2]