The Metrorail Protection Services (MPS) recovered stolen railway cables valued at around R200 000 at a scrapyard in Benoni on October 23, which includes overhead catenary wires and droppers weighing 1 673kg.
One suspect, believed to be the manager at the scrapyard, was taken into custody at the Benoni Police Station.
“Cable theft is a big problem in the province whereby trains cannot be operated remotely thus resulting in severe delays due to manual authorisation,” said Gauteng Metrorail spokesperson Lillian Mofokeng.
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“The two corridors, with recently growing levels of theft of critical infrastructure components negatively affecting commuter traveling experiences and train service reliability daily are Pretoria – Johannesburg – Tembisa.
“We call upon commuters and the public at large to assist Metrorail and law enforcement agencies to fight these criminals at large by reporting any suspicious activities happening in our environment.”
“The actual ripple effect of cable theft is job losses, scholars arriving late for work including during exam times and employers also losing productivity time due to the unreliability of the system leading to vandalism of assets by frustrated commuters and closure of some lines.”
Mofokeng also urged the public to take a stand against cable theft.
