The Gautrain Management Agency has already started marketing to invite bids for the next new delivery partner who will operate, maintain, modernise, innovate, and upgrade the current Gautrain system in order for it to continue providing a safe and efficient public transport service.
The bids invitation is motivated by the two-decade concession agreement between the Gauteng Provincial Government and the Bombela Concession Company to operate the Gautrain which will be coming to its end in 2026.
Gautrain made the announcement early this week, on the sidelines of its 14th anniversary launch and in a year that South Africa marks 30 years of democracy and freedom.
The Gautrain’s transport network includes 10 stations that connect Johannesburg, Pretoria, Ekurhuleni and O.R. Tambo International Airport, 96 rail cars including 24 x4 Electric Multiple Units, a fleet of 125 heavy haul busses, and 29 minibuses.
In June 2010, Gautrain had its first group of commuters with its route frequency from Sandton Station to O.R. Tambo International Airport where it was subsequently a period when South Africa hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup and according to agency’s Chief Executive Officer Tshepo Kgobe, since then, the Gautrain project has successfully completed approximately 192.8 million passenger trips.
To many it sounded like a pipe dream when the Gauteng Provincial Government announced the idea according to Kgobe, that the province can run a high-speed rail network with an 80-kilometre route between its North, South, and the Eastern regions.
“Fourteen years later we have managed to employ 1500 staff across operations and administration of the Gautrain project. We also maintain an average of more than 90% availability and punctuality across all Gautrain services.”
“In many ways, the Gautrain is a trailblazer in the South African rail and public transport sector. It is the first and only rapid rail network in the country, and it was the first Public-Private Partnership (PPP) of its scale in South Africa when it was launched,” said Gautrain CEO.
It is estimated that R46 billion total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) impact has been added to the Gauteng Provincial Government economy and a total of 245 000 jobs have been created due to property development induced by the Gautrain.
Kgobe highlights that the Gautrain is a strategic national asset valued at R46 billion, and once the current concession expires at the end of its 19.5-year term, the costs of establishing this long-term asset will have been paid off, allowing the Post 2026 Gautrain Project to reap the economic benefits.
“The Gautrain has proven to be more than just a transport project, it is playing a bigger role in Transforming Spaces, People and the Economy through Mobility. “The Gautrain has brought jobs, new skills, the easing of mobility for ordinary people, and major economic developments around stations.”
“With a shared vision and strong team effort, a dream of a world-class public transport system became a reality,” says Kgobe.
