New milestone as Prasa recovers Florida and four more passenger rail lines

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) is pleased to inform the public of the successful restoration of the Florida rail line and four more crucial Metrorail services across Gauteng, KZN, and the Western Cape.

After years of commuters struggling to find effective and money-saving transport. Prasa has successfully made its commuters smile with the reopening of the Florida to Johannesburg route on March 30.

Prasa has successfully brought 31 of 40 lines back into partial operation and is focused on achieving full operational status for these corridors.

“Recognising the growing demand for our services, we are actively working to repair vandalised signalling equipment. These repairs are essential, not only for the safe operation of the trains but also to increase the frequency of services to meet the commuters’ needs,” says Gauteng Metrorail spokesperson Asanda Makanda.

This milestone demonstrates Prasa’s commitment to revitalising passenger rail services, providing an efficient and cost-effective public transport option for South Africans.

According to Gauteng Metrorail marketing and communication manager Lillian Mofokeng, the train service between Johannesburg – Langlaagte – Florida is operational with effect from March 30 as part of Phase 1 of the service recovery programme.

Significant progress is being made on the Central Line, with ongoing efforts to rehabilitate rail infrastructure from Phillippi to Nolungile and onwards to Chris Hani.

Prasa has successfully restored four more route services that started operating on March 30. This includes Johannesburg to Nancefield (Gauteng); Cape Town to Stellenbosch (Western Cape); Merebank to Chatsglen (KZN) and Germiston to Elsburg (Gauteng)

According to Makanda, the recovery of these lines has been made possible by dedicated staff across various regions, who have spared no effort and commitment in reaching these achievements, despite facing considerable challenges. Prasa remains steadfast in its mission to restore passenger rail as the backbone of public transport in South Africa.

Mofokeng told the Roodepoort Record that Phase 2 will be implemented to extend the service to Roodepoort Station and their plans indicate that the station will be operational within the current financial year. The actual resumption date will be confirmed closer to the time.