Oversight conducted by the Democratic Alliance in the Northern Cape to the De Aar railway station confirms how South Africa’s rail network has all but collapsed, taking with it the hope of growth and development needed to drive job creation.
The most recent Quarterly Labour Force Survey confirms that nearly one in two people in the Northern Cape cannot find a job.
Regional economies are hamstrung by the lack of affordable and reliable railways, as rail freight volumes plummeted from 226 million tonnes in 2017 to only 152 million tonnes in 2024.
Reduced capacity harms business confidence, makes everything more expensive for consumers, and causes job losses. De Aar has not been spared from this economic onslaught and the town that used to be synonymous with the hustle of trains connecting the local economy to Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Upington, Kimberley, Namibia, and beyond has fallen victim to sluggish growth.
In the absence of reliable railways, trucks transporting goods have taken over the town and the abnormal loads crush the roads designed for lighter vehicles. The DA called for a multi-pronged approach for better maintenance in the short term. In the long run, we need affordable rail freight to ease congestion and reduce the need for maintenance.
We must speed up the concession of freight rail lines to capable private operators through transparent and competitive tendering processes that identifies the best partners for growth.
We also need to modernise, upgrade and maintain rail infrastructure, with strict law enforcement to protect our essential infrastructure. This must go hand-in-glove with a comprehensive review of South Africa’s tariff regime to lower input costs for manufacturers and exporters must be implemented.
The time for endless talk is over. South Africa’s economy is in crisis, and it is time for urgent action to fix our economy and create jobs.