CAPE TOWN - Residents living along the southern railway line have expressed outrage over the inability of Metrorail to do anything about the level crossings that have seen several trains hit vehicles.
The Uxbridge level crossing in Lakeside has had two accidents since January. The first one was when a lorry was hit by a train and ploughed into the signalling equipment, damaging the boom. This had led to the boom not working and Metrorail saying it had to order new parts from overseas, and the boom and signalling would only be fixed next month.
Meanwhile, a second accident happened when a car was hit by a train on Sunday. Since then, several readers told of near-misses at the same spot and other level crossings.
Since the crashes at Uxbridge, two security guards were sent by Metro Rail to warn motorists of oncoming trains. The two security guards use red flags to warn motorists. The two guards spoke to the Cape Argus on condition of anonymity.
“We have been here since that big accident in January and we’ve been told that the project will be starting soon but we still here,” a female security guard said. She said that at night it became extremely dangerous for them.
Anne Hunt, a resident of Lakeside, said:“When you come to Lakeside, you cannot see whether a train is coming on or not because of the bushes around it. I decided to go across the train tracks and then I heard the train sirens,” she said. Hunt said the guards were not very helpful.
A Kalk Bay resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, said the traffic light just after the level crossing at the harbour posed a huge risk.
“I went over the level crossing, but the robot was red and there was a car parked in front of me. I had to squeeze against his bumper just to avoid the oncoming train,” she said. “What if there was another car in front of me? Is Metrorail waiting for someone to die before they do something?”
Metrorail spokesperson Daphne Kayster said it was working on the level crossing lights at Kalk Bay. Metrorail said the work at Uxbridge would be completed by the end of next month.