Pretoria - The Gautrain Management Agency yesterday denied it was hiding the cause of the derailment this week of South
Africa’s passenger speed-train, which caused serious delays in Pretoria.
This comes after the rail link between Hatfield and Pretoria stations was closed around 8.30am on Thursday allegedly due to the derailment.
Hundreds of passengers were forced to use alternative transport after they were evacuated from the Gautrain following the suspension of operations as a “minor derailment” had occurred when the train approached Hatfield station.
DA Gauteng spokesperson on roads and transport, Neil Campbell, accused the agency of keeping the investigation away from the public.
“A derailment of a Gautrain cannot be shrouded in the secrecy which the Gautrain Management Agency seems to employ when problems arise on the network,” Campbell said.
“If the closure was due to a derailment, an internal investigation will not be sufficient to reassure the public that the train is safe to ride.”
Campbell said this would be an ideal opportunity for the
Rail Safety Regulator to
investigate the matter, but it was unlikely that it would
have the capacity to do so given the financial constraints on the regulator.
In response, the agency’s senior executive manager of communication and marketing, Barbara Jensen, said the Rail Safety Regulator was, in any case, involved in the investigation of any such incident.
“The Gautrain Management Agency is waiting for the findings to come in and then will release information to the public,” Jensen said.
“Nothing is shrouded in mystery,” she said.
But the DA does not seem to be satisfied.
Campbell said that the MEC for Roads and Transport, Ismail Vadi, must establish an independent inquiry into the derailment.
“The DA is of the opinion that independent experts must be appointed and report back to Vadi and the provincial portfolio committee who must be convinced of the train’s safety,” Campbell said.
“The public has a right to know why the train derailed as a matter of urgency,” he said.