Transport Minister Dipuo Peters
The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) has, to date, taken delivery of five X’Trapolis Mega train sets being manufactured by the Gibela Rail Transportation Consortium, in Brazil.
A further two of the train sets, each comprising six coaches, were en route to South Africa, while the remaining 13 were in the manufacturing phase.
The 20 train sets formed part of the Gibela consortium’s R51-billion contract, signed with PRASA in 2013, for the supply of about 600 train sets over a ten-year period.
The other 580 train sets would be locally manufactured at a R1-billion facility that is under construction in Dunnotar, Ekurhuleni, and which is expected to be fully operational by June next year.
Speaking at the public launch of Test Train No 2 (TT2), on Tuesday, PRASA senior executive Piet Sebola reiterated that the first of the X’Trapolis Mega train sets would be commissioned by October.
Unlike the first test train, TT1, which had not been outfitted with any passenger comforts, the first three coaches of TT2, which was delivered to PRASA in March, had been fully fitted with all the interior components, including air-conditioning, closed-circuit television and an emergency passenger intercom system.
The three remaining coaches had been fitted only with electronic systems, to allow for comparison with the TT1’s electronic systems, as part of the overall test phase.
Transport Minister Dipuo Peters called on South Africans to protect and value the new trains, stressing the importance of PRASA and government’s investment in new rolling stock to ensure the delivery of good-quality services to communities.