Only 32% of Prasa’s 34 corridors are functioning at the moment but the agency aims to reopen three more from next month.
FILE: Commuters are socially distanced while waiting to board a Metrorail train. Picture: Metrorail
JOHANNESBURG – The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) said that that COVID-19 lockdown had forced the railway agency to rethink how it operated, with only 11 corridors operational for now.
Every year, the railway agency loses millions of rands when syndicates strip cables and other essential equipment, resulting in trains going out of service for long periods.
Only 32% of Prasa’s 34 corridors are functioning at the moment but the agency aims to reopen three more from next month.
It’s now focusing on the execution of its plans.
Prasa CEO Nosipho Damasane said: “I’m actually going with the teams and other executives to see how we’re operating. There is no overcrowding and I think COVID-19 has actually helped us to think in terms of operating the railway system. In three months, we have opened 11 corridors and we have a clear plan to 31 March to open the entire system.”
