Transnet Freight Rail is a South African rail transport company, formerly known as Spoornet. It was part of the South African Railways and Harbours Administration, a state-controlled organisation that employed hundreds of thousands of people for decades from the first half of the 20th century and was widely referred to by the initials SAR&H (SAS&H in Afrikaans). Customer complaints about serious problems with Transnet Freight Rail's service were reported in 2010.[1] Its head office is in Inyanda House in Parktown, Johannesburg.[2]
History
Railways were first developed in the area surrounding Cape Town and later in Durban around the 1840s. The first line opened in Durban on 27 June 1850. The initial network was created to serve the agricultural production area between Cape Town and Wellington. The news that there were gold deposits in the Transvaal Republic moved the Cape Colony Government (supported by British Government) to link Kimberley as soon as possible by rail to Cape Town as part of the colonial dream.[3]
Transnet Freight Rail is a freight logistics and passenger transport railway. It is the largest freight hauler in Africa. The company comprises several businesses:
GFB Commercial (General Freight Business) – Transnet's largest division; handles over 50% of its freight;
Coal Line, serving coal exporters on the Mpumalanga – Richards Bay line; second largest coal railway in the world, delivering 62 million tonnes of coal (also known as "Black Gold") in the year ending 31 March 2010;[6]
In May 2010, Transnet revealed a five-year-plan involving rail projects costing R52Bn. Most of this would be spent on new rolling stock, including 304 locomotives and 7231 wagons. R4Bn would be spent on infrastructure connecting Majuba coal-fired power station with the Richards Bay freight railway.[9]
Transnet is upgrading the rail corridor which connect the Port of Ngqura with manganese mines around Hotazel in the Northern Cape. The corridor would be 1,003 kilometres (623 mi) long, and would mostly involve upgrades of existing lines; capacity is expected to increase from 5·5 million tonnes / year to 16 mpta.[10]
Swazilink is expected to connect from Lothair to Sidvokodvo in Eswatini, at a cost of R17 billion.[11]
^"Contact UsArchived 23 July 2013 at the Wayback Machine." Transnet Freight Rail. Retrieved on 15 April 2013. "Physical Address Inyanda House 15 Girton Road Parktown 2193"
