Date for Gautrain's maiden voyage set

Gauteng's state-of-the-art Gautrain is set to carry its first passengers from OR Tambo International Airport to Sandton on June 8, three days before the World Cup kick-off.

Barbara Jensen, spokeswoman for the Gauteng province on the Gautrain, said four stations - OR Tambo, Rhodesfield in Kempton Park, Marlboro and Sandton - would be fully operational by Saturday, June 5, when the inauguration takes place.

Although Sandton will be fully operational, construction will still be in progress for the next few months on the second phase, from Sandton to Park station in central Joburg.

The first trip for members of the public is set to take place on Tuesday, June 8.

The fare schedule will be finalised by the end of this week, but trips from the airport to Sandton are expected to be about R100 to R120, one way.

From Sandton there will be feeder buses to stadiums and other locations. Passengers will disembark from the train underneath Sandton City.

The station and parking are 15 storeys underground.

It will take 12 minutes from OR Tambo to Sandton, with the train reaching speeds of 160km/h.

At the airport, passengers will be taken straight into the arrivals lounge.

People will be able to buy tickets at an automated ticketing system at the airport.

Transport master plan may cost R750bn

A TRANSPORT master plan costing R750bn, which includes linking Johannesburg to Durban and Polokwane via rapid train networks, was presented to Parliament by the Department of Transport yesterday.

The plan’s project manager, Lanfranc Situma, told the portfolio committee for transport that the department needed urgent approval from MPs so that the Cabinet-initiated National Transport Master Plan (Natmap) could “get moving”.

“We are not saying we are going to build a train tomorrow. We are saying we want to have to prepare a project document that will be able complete for funding,” Situma said.

Natmap transport planning consultant Paul Lombard recommended to the committee that studies be done on whether it was feasible to extend the Gautrain project to the Durban-Johannesburg and Pretoria-Polokwane lines. “We must ask if we can afford it and how affordable it will be to passengers and the government,” Lombard said.

He recommended the immediate institution of a rail infrastructure-owning entity, similar to the Airports Company SA, that would “eventually absorb” SA’s entire network and “allow existing freight and passenger agencies to operate on the network”.

The plan, which includes expanding the port of Saldanha, doubling the size of the Huguenot Tunnel outside Paarl, and expanding the port of Cape Town as other vital projects, would cost roughly R750bn should it be launched today, financial project manager Themba September said.

He said part of the plan was to form partnerships with the private sector to help fund the project and lower the burden to taxpayers. “Overall, between now and 2050, the cost of the project will be around R750bn.

“We would hope to fund a large part of the project through private-public partnerships. We would like to find the right ratio of ownership between the private and public sector.”

September could not speculate on a start date for the project, but said it was important that SA “wasn’t caught napping. Someone at some point has to make a hard, cold decision on this”.

Situma told the MPs SA could qualify for foreign funding for the rail project as it had voluntarily agreed to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 46%. “If you build a railway or a train, you are going to be cutting down the emissions from the road because there will be less vehicles emitting carbon on the roads. “Because of that, we will qualify for funding which other people are getting. That money is readily available.”

The Natmap was initiated in 2007 to establish a multimodal transportation system to meet SA’s needs up to 2050. Sapa

GAUTRAIN SMARTCARD TICKETING

From the Gautrain website:

. Smart card electronic ticketing requires only one ticket for the train, bus and parking.
. Commuters will be able to use preloaded smart cards at self-help, computerised ticket vending machines in order to pay for train trips, bus trips or parking.
. Money can be loaded on to the smart card using cash, debit cards or credit cards.
. Contactless technology means that smart cards will be scanned electronically when they are swiped past station access-gate readers.
. In the future, Gautrain’s electronic ticketing system will form part of a single ticketing system for all modes of public transport across Gauteng.

Gautrain calculates fares with airport shuttle due to run next month

GAUTRAIN is likely to finalise the fare structure for its new high-speed rail link in the coming week, with the first phase of the project between Sandton and Oliver Tambo International Airport due to begin operations on June 8.

The cost of the 12-minute trip to the airport is likely to be between R100 and R120 for a one-way trip, with travel to the other stations — Marlboro and Rhodesfield — likely to cost far less.

“Gautrain will charge a premium for the airport link as it is a tailored service,” Gautrain spokeswoman Barbara Jensen said late last week. “Compare that to the expected cost of R30 to R40 for a trip from Park Station to Hatfield in Pretoria when the service becomes fully operational in the first half of next year.”

The first two coaches of the train will be used exclusively for the airport service and will offer commuters larger seats and more luggage space.

“The airport coaches will be separate from the rest of the train, with only the first two coaches able to dock at the airport platform,” Jensen said. The trains will run 12 minutes apart during the peak morning and evening periods, and 20 minutes apart during the rest of the day.

“When the second phase opens during the first half of next year, the intervals between trains will drop to 10 minutes in peak periods and 15 minutes during the rest of the day,” said Jensen.

Gautrain estimated in 2003 that up to 140000 commuters would use the train once it was fully up and running, but Jensen believes the introduction of toll fees on Gauteng highways next year will push up passenger numbers on the train.

“We believe that the service will be aimed at the upper income group. However, we also expect to attract an aspirational group of middle-income earners who may be lured away from the minibus taxis,” Jensen said.

However, she points out that the mandate has always been to attract a middle market that was more expensive than the average minibus taxi but less than the perceived cost of using a private motor vehicle.

The fares will be managed using a smartcard system and will allow commuters to pay for the train fare and associated parking and bus service using a single card.

The Gautrain station in Sandton will have 1800 parking bays linked to the station and the nearby shopping district. “The parking rates will be far cheaper than that at OR Tambo International,” said Jensen.

Gautrain will also initially have a fleet of 40 buses that operate a distribution service from the stations, with departures linked to those of the rail link.

Jensen admitted that security was the biggest concern for many potential commuters and Gautrain had paid particular attention to the matter.

“We will have 400 accredited security guards and 700 (closed-circuit TV) cameras at the stations and on the trains and buses,” said Kelebogile Machaka, a spokeswoman for Bombela, the company operating the Gautrain. Only commuters would be allowed on the platform, with access through dedicated gates.

Africa's first high-speed train to open ahead of World Cup

The Gautrain, Africa's first high-speed rail line, will launch on June 8 in South Africa three days before the opening match of the 2010 football World Cup, the developers said Friday.

The Gautrain at OR Tambo International Airport near Johannesburg, South Africa

French construction giant Bouygues said the train's first segment, linking OR Tambo International Airport and the posh Johannesburg suburb of Sandton, will open in time for the June 11 kick-off of Africa's first World Cup.

The segment "will be handed over on June 8, three weeks ahead of our original schedule," said Christian Gazaignes, Bouygues' executive director.

For R100 (13 dollars, 10 euros), World Cup visitors will be able to ride the 15 kilometres from the airport to the Sandton hotel district in less than 15 minutes.

In rush-hour traffic, the same trip takes more than an hour by car.

When finished in mid-2011, the 80-kilometre regional express train will link the capital Pretoria with national economic hub Johannesburg, running at speeds of up to 160 kilometres (99 miles) an hour and enabling commuters to make the trip in 42 minutes.

"It's going to give the country a beautiful image of modernity," said Laurence Leblanc, international director of RATP Dev, a subsidiary of French group RATP, the company awarded a 15-year concession to operate the train.

"The Gautrain isn't specifically a World Cup project. It doesn't serve the stadiums," said Leblanc. "But it's a superb project for South Africa's image. That's why we're knocking ourselves out to get ready."

The Bombela Consortium, an international group that includes Bouygues, Canadian firm Bombardier and two South African companies, began construction on the project in 2006.

The developers say they have "worked like crazy" to finish the first section before the World Cup, making up time lost to strikes and construction delays.

The 3.2-million-dollar Gautrain is the first high-speed rail line in Africa. The north African cities of Casablanca, Algiers and Cairo all have metro lines, but none runs as fast or as far as the Gautrain.

South African transportation officials say the train will form the backbone of a new public transport network that will help take traffic off the notoriously congested roads of the greater metropolitan area.

"We're targeting people who have the means to own a small car but would prefer to avoid traffic jams," said Leblanc.

RATP says it is targeting South Africans with a monthly income of 1,030 to 2,580 dollars (about R7000 to R20 000), and predicts 16,000 passengers a day will use the new rail line.

To get them to the train, the company plans to roll out a network of shuttle buses serving the population centres around the train stations.

RATP has set the price for the airport-Sandton route relatively high at 13 dollars (R100). But the Sandton-Pretoria segment will cost just 4.5 dollars (about R30), rivalling the price of the mini-buses that currently provide most of area's mass transit.

Officials hope the price scheme will help turn South Africans onto public transport, in a country where mass transit systems languished for decades under apartheid policies designed to keep whites and blacks apart.

RATP also promises tight security on the trains, using closed-circuit TV cameras, 400 security guards and 50 police officers to convince South Africans to abandon the protective shell of their vehicles.

Sapa-AFP

A ride on the Gautrain with the guy who drove the project

Gautrain a future boost for Centurion

Gautrain a future boost for Centurion
12 May 2010

The Centurion property market is set to receive huge boost in terms of demand and price growth in a year’s time when the Gautrain station grinds to completion.

So says Charmaine Coetzee, office manager for Pam Golding Properties (PGP) in Centurion, who adds that people who can buy or hold on to their property in the vicinity of the station, will reap excellent rewards.

“The Centurion property market is expected to grow over the next few years as the Gautrain and the newly upgraded highways make this beautiful and safe area more accessible to people who work as far afield as Midrand and Johannesburg. In addition, the newly planned Convention Centre in the area is expected to positively influence property values,” says Nic van den Berg of RE/MAX Jowic.

“The property market has shown growth over the past seven months, and we expect a steady positive growth for the next three to five years,” Van den Berg says.

“While the market growth is still far off the levels we experienced three years ago, and are unlikely to see ever again, there are signs of stock shortages in certain market segments. This is due to the fact that there are currently no new developments in the sectional or full-title markets. Prices will start to escalate once the current supply levels diminish.”

Coetzee says prices in Centurion are definitely higher than last year, but adds that the growth is moderate and nowhere near the 2007 levels. “Properties in estates have certainly seen some steady growth as demand grew.”

Van den Berg says the current average price for an entry-level property in Centurion is around R450k. Mid-level property prices average R850k, while more expensive properties are priced at R2,5m and above. “There are properties in the upper-market segment that are currently overpriced and these sellers will have to wait until the banks have relaxed their credit criteria before demand for these properties will pick up. Currently, our cash buyers are looking for better priced homes,” he says.

“There is also still a good supply of land available as builders remain constrained by the availability of loans, and land prices have not increased over the last 24 months.”

Coetzee says anything up to R2,5m is moving briskly right now and agrees with Van den berg that the upper end of the market is still quite slow with very few sales. “It’s also hard to single out a specific group as the main component of the buyers’ pool, as it consists of anything ranging from families to young couples to retirees.

“It has to be said, though, that first-time buyers are still struggling to obtain home loans, but not to a significant degree.”

When asked about stock shortages, she said there is a big dearth of rental properties now on the market between R600k and R900k. “People are shedding their rental properties rather than continuing to let them.”

“We’re also experiencing a massive demand for stands with people more keen to build now. The interest in security estates is also showing good improvement although the sales aren’t quite there yet.

Coetzee says a property in Centurion will be on the market for a mere 30 days if it is priced right. “But if it’s not, be prepared to wait 60-90 days, if it sells at all.” – Eugene Brink

A first ride on the Gautrain