The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) said it was working to address some of the operational challenges that led to the suspension of some Shosholoza Meyl services.
Earlier this month, Prasa quietly suspended the train trips between Johannesburg to Cape Town.
Prasa's Andiswa Makanda told IOL that the Johannesburg to Cape Town service had been temporarily suspended or stopped due to operational challenges and lack of reliable locomotives.
“This will allow the team to deal with some of the operational challenges,” Makanda said.
Passengers were informed of the temporary suspension via telephone.
"We are working on addressing some of the operational challenges and locomotive issues," Makanda said.
Shosholoza Meyl resumed its trips between Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban in December last year.
The services restarted following a suspension in 2021 due to operational and network infrastructure issues.
At the time, Prasa said the resumption of the long-distance passenger rail service was its commitment to offering an alternative mode of transport, connecting families and friends, and offering holiday-makers an affordable and convenient means to reach their destinations.
However, Makanda said only five trips were completed for the December high-peak period. She said only two trips were completed by train with three trips were completed by bus.
IOL reported that passengers travelling from Johannesburg to Cape Town aboard the first Shosholoza Meyl long distance trip in two years had to complete the rest of their trip by bus, due to the theft of overhead cables in Wellington, about an hour and a half away from their destination.
Prasa further reported that overhead wires were stolen between Kraaifontein and Muldersvlei, affecting the train trip.
In October last year, Cape Times reported security-related incidents constitute a mammoth challenge in the railway sector, with 97% of cases involving theft and vandalism.
IOL