Transnet’s collapse devastating for economic growth, road infrastructure
02 February 2022
STATEMENT BY THE CITY’S MAYORAL COMMITTEE MEMBER FOR URBAN MOBILITY, COUNCILLOR ROB QUINTAS
Yesterday, acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo released his second State Capture Report which details how Transnet was captured in 2009 with billions in public funds diverted to ‘the Gupta racketeering enterprise’. The Judicial Commission of Inquiry states that ‘there are reasonable grounds to believe that the relevant employees and board members of Transnet violated the Constitution and other legislation by facilitating the unlawful awarding of tenders by Transnet to benefit the Gupta enterprise. The likely offences and identified wrongdoing should be referred to the law enforcement authorities for further investigation’.
It is sometimes difficult to translate the impact and consequences of corruption.
However, here, in Cape Town, and I guess across South Africa, the direct and devastating impact of Transnet’s collapse is clear for all to see.
Our road networks are taking huge strain because freight that should have been moving via train, is transported by trucks given that Transnet is barely functioning.
Cape Town’s local and regional economy is based on global trade and depends largely on the efficient transport of cargo to and from the port, airport and between cities and towns. Rail is the most efficient and cost effective mode of transport, be it for commuting or many types of freight.
Given Transnet’s collapse, the transportation of cargo has been largely diverted to our road network over the past 12 years or so. This is having a significant impact on the City’s roads and the urban environment and we are paying the cost in terms of carbon emissions, congestion, road accidents, and road maintenance.
In fact, in 2016 the City estimated that the cost of maintenance of our roads amounted to R713 million per year. This annual cost which is borne by the City, and subsequently by the ratepayers of Cape Town, is likely to have increased since then.
The City’s Urban Mobility Directorate must preserve the current existing road infrastructure with regular road maintenance, however, given Transnet’s collapse, we are now under obligation to plan ahead for a disproportionate growth in freight vehicles.
The City’s Transport Development Index (TDI) was developed in 2015 to evaluate the accessibility and related costs of transport to different income groups and users across Cape Town. At the time, the TDI established that:
• the direct transport cost (fuel, salaries, maintenance and repairs, toll fees, etc.) for freight operators was R1,755 billion per annum
• the cost of congestion for freight operators was R121 million per annum
• the cost of safety was R19 million per annum
• the impact of freight transporters on Cape Town’s residents in terms of accidents was R930 million per annum
• the impact of freight transporters on the city’s road network (capital expenditure and maintenance) was R713 million per annum, in 2015
Before the Covid-19 pandemic there had been significant growth in road-based freight along Cape Town’s major roads due to the increase in fast moving consumer goods worldwide. This growth was also a direct consequence of the dramatic decline in rail’s share of freight, and Transnet’s collapse during the State Capture years.
Much of the freight moving to and from Cape Town is transported along the N1, N2 and N7 and in 2015 up to 20% of the vehicles on the N1 were heavy vehicles. As transport accounts for one quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in Cape Town and contributes substantially to air pollution, a shift towards more sustainable freight movement is essential.
With life gradually returning to normal Cape Town’s roads will again become congested with freight transport exacerbating the situation, adding to the noise pollution and carbon emissions.
Road-based freight has a huge impact on Cape Town and although not all of this can be transported by train, rail must be part of the solution as this will bring down the cost of doing business, the cost to our environment and the cost to commuters in terms of longer travelling times due to congestion.
Our local economy is desperate for rail infrastructure and operations that can meet our demands: for those who need to commute, and those who need to move cargo.
End
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
