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chapter 22 Transport

The Department of Transport’s vision is one ment, with people, particularly the poor, of a transport system that builds a better life often having to travel long distances. for all. Its mission is to promote affordable This reduces the economic efficiency of transport access and mobility that is safe, the transport system and has a high social reliable and internationally competitive. cost because transport consumes a relative- The Department’s main objective is to ly large proportion of the disposable income formulate, co-ordinate, implement and of the poor. monitor transport strategies and policies in Coupled with this is the high rate of trans- general, and to enhance safety, improve port accidents, on both roads and rail. public transport and develop transport infra- Overcoming these problems is the central structure. challenge facing the Department of The other key objectives include: Transport. The Department is working to •facilitating access and affordability of pub-improve and expand infrastructure, and lic transport to the commuting public through subsidies, reduce the costs of public •planning, developing and maintaining transport. transport infrastructure to improve mobili- Transport policy is built on the framework ty and quality of life and contribute to eco- set out by the Moving South Africa project, nomic development which began in 1997, and the National •promoting sector and enterprise reforms Land Transport Transition Act, 2000 (Act 22 of to create a reliable, safe and competitive 2000). transport system. These set out a vision of an efficient public transport system with the use of targeted Policy subsidies, and the provision of a high-quality, comprehensive infrastructure. Transport infrastructure in South Africa is The Department is continuously reviewing, deeply affected by the disparities arising developing, monitoring and evaluating its from previous patterns of spatial develop- policies and strategies.

Public-transport subsidies In 2003, South African Airways won the follow- ing awards: Best African Airline, Best Domestic Transport subsidies are a potentially impor- Airline, Best International Airline flying to South tant tool for improving efficiency, access and Afric (ASATA Diners Club), Best Airline in Africa, equity. In the past they have been targeted Best Cabin Crew in Africa (Skytrax), Best Airline loosely and implemented selectively, but the based in Africa (the Official Airline Guide) and Top Airline in Africa (the British weekly maga- Department is trying to target subsidies at zine, Travel Bulletin). those with the greatest need – vulnerable

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groups such as learners, people with disabili- and modes of transport used by the majority ties, the aged, the unemployed and the of citizens, to help government to intervene employed poor – to maximise economic and properly in the allocation of subsidy and social gains. transport spending. The strategy also seeks to integrate trans- By July 2003, the Department was conduct- port that is accessible to people with ing a strategic review of public-transport disabilities, and to promote the provision of policy and strategy, including the development accessible transport across all modes of of a policy on the targeting of public-transport public transport. subsidies for bus and commuter rail. The Significant additional funds have been Department allocates R4 billion per annum allocated to the Department – over R1,5 billion to public-transport subsidies for bus and – to help to deliver more effective and efficient commuter-rail transportation. public transport. Subsidised bus services currently operate in The Department is continuing to improve 36 local authorities in the country. Most the efficiency of bus subsidies. It has already subsidies are funded from the Department of converted 30% of bus-subsidy contracts to Transport’s budget, while provincial budgets more efficient, competitive tenders, and the provide for additional subsidies in certain remaining 70% were expected to be converted areas. during 2003/04. It is also reforming contract During the 2001/02 financial year, almost provisions to ensure greater value for money 380 million subsidised passenger trips were for the Department. The passenger rail recorded, while subsidised buses covered network also receives significant amounts of approximately 362 million kilometres (km). money. On average, each subsidised bus passenger In 2003, the Department of Transport received approximately R198 in subsidies per commissioned Statistics South Africa to month, constituting some 6,7% of the average conduct a nationwide survey on travel patterns household income.

Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) By June 2003, the Department of Transport By June 2003, the curriculum for traffic-officer training was being revised to extend it from six was engaged in a process of developing a months to one year. BEE Strategy for the transport sector. The proposed change is expected to take place The objective of the process is to identify in 2004. The revised course will meet the South African Qualifications Authority’s registration the challenges, set targets, and develop a requirements. monitoring and evaluation framework for the The course content will be modernised and implementation of the Strategy. more subjects that are relevant to the operational responsibilities of traffic officers, such as first aid The process includes stakeholders from and trauma-management skills, will be intro- all the key subsectors, such as maritime, duced. The revised basic course will further close the aviation, rail, road construction, minibus-taxis, gap between metro and traffic courses as it will buses and road freight. have the same legal content as the South African The proposed BEE targets will require Police Service course. All 10 traffic training colleges have been evaluated for the first time in provinces to set aside a minimum of 30% of six years. services to be contracted to companies with Certain metropolitan police departments have at least 50,1% previously disadvantaged indi- replaced traditional traffic departments. In such cases, traffic policing duties and functions have viduals (PDIs). Of the remaining 70% of servic- also been taken over. es, a minimum of 35% PDI equity ownership

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will be required, together with 10% subcon- Presidential rural nodes. This Programme has tracting of services to small, medium and four subcomponents: micro enterprises (SMMEs)/PDIs. •The promotion of ownership and usage of The process of developing a Maritime various rural transport operations (e.g. Transport BEE Strategy has been under way human/animal-drawn carts) in low-income since the end of May 2003. rural areas and at local project level. A steering committee was nominated, with •The creation and/or improvement of the objective of overseeing the formulation of appropriate, safe on- and off-the-road rural- the Draft Maritime Transport BEE Strategy. transport infrastructure (on-the-road in- By September 2003, the Draft Strategy was cludes access roads, low-level access available for comment from industry. bridges, etc. and off-the-road includes foot- paths, side-tracks, as well as various safety Non-motorised transport gadgets). Greater emphasis will be placed on the •Alleviating rural poverty by promoting the promotion of non-motorised transport, economic as well as strong industrial primarily with a view to increasing transport dimension of NMT project operations and mobility and accessibility, mainly in rural areas. infrastructure (e.g. SMMEs). This will be In his budget vote speech in June 2002, the achieved by exploiting to the maximum Minister of Transport, Mr Dullah Omar, local expertise in the running and sustaining announced that the Department would roll of the Programme. out the Non-Motorised Transport (NMT) •Impact assessment and programme evalua- Programme in the Kgalagadi and Botlhabela tion. The main objective of this component is to provide meaningful contributions to the rural transport strategy.

By June 2003, a total of 16 pedestrian roadshows Transport safety were held, aimed at promoting pedestrian road Increased emphasis will be placed on safety safety through the use of music artists and role models and the distribution of retro-reflective issues in all transport modes. The Road to material such as sashes and bandanas. Safety Strategy, transportation of dangerous Between April 2002 and June 2003, the goods by road, the establishment of a Maritime Western Cape built two pedestrian bridges – one on the N2 and the other on the R300. Other Rescue Centre, the setting-up of the Railway pedestrian bridges were constructed in Safety Regulator and the Road-Traffic Manage- Hammanskraal and Witbank in Gauteng. ment Corporation (RTMC) are examples of this. By June 2003, there were 2 826 scholar patrols, with 162 in the Eastern Cape, 65 in the Northern The RTMC Bill, which improves the structure Cape, 185 in Mpumalanga, 48 in the North West, and systems of the Board, was approved for 109 in KwaZulu-Natal, 1 467 in Gauteng, 96 in submission to Parliament in December 2002. Limpopo, 285 in the Free State and some 200 in the Western Cape. The Department of Transport Each province had to identify 10 hazardous has centralised the administration and control of locations and prioritise three for improvement. all scholar patrols including equipment and uniforms. Some 20 000 scholar patrol bibs have Work is under way to improve safety in those been distributed in all nine provinces. locations. Of the envisaged 26 Junior Traffic Training Centres, 20 had been completed and six were under construction by June 2003. New Partnership for Africa’s The Centres are aimed at educating children Development (NEPAD) through simulating the real road environment. In From a transport point of view, key issues in the most rural areas, trailers, which will act as Centres, will be distributed to the different creating an effectively co-ordinated African provinces. response to global market challenges are

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market access, mobility, and systems integra- The SANRAL was established in April 1998 tion. These are the factors that, in the overall as an independent, statutory company. It is environment of increasingly effective govern- responsible for the design, construction, ance, make sustained economic and social management and maintenance of South development possible. Africa’s national road network, both toll and The Department is contributing actively to non-toll. It is also charged with raising the the practical realisation of both NEPAD and finances required to develop and manage the Southern African Development Community road network, an asset worth an estimated (SADC) development goals in several major R40 billion. areas, by promoting: The SANRAL’s responsibilities are to: •efficient and effective maritime transport •strategically plan, design, construct, operate, services rehabilitate and maintain South Africa’s •rail-systems integration national roads •road-systems development and infrastruc- •deliver and maintain a world-class primary- ture maintenance. road network •generate revenue from the development and Agencies management of its assets •undertake research and development to The Department of Transport has established enhance the quality of the country’s roads four bodies to move certain elements of gov- •upon request of the Minister and in agree- ernment's operational activities to commercial ment with a foreign country, provide, operate agencies. They are the South African National and maintain roads in that country. Roads Agency Ltd (SANRAL), the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA), the Cross- South African Maritime Border Road Transport Agency (CBRTA), and Safety Authority the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The Authority is a statutory body that reports The agencies perform functions and to the Minister of Transport. Its responsibilities services previously provided by the national include the promotion of safety of life and Department of Transport, in a fully commercial property at sea, the prevention of sea pollution environment. They have been assigned clearly by pollutants emanating from ships, and the defined responsibilities and functions, and co-ordination of overall technical operations. It each agency has entered into a formal also develops policy on legal issues, foreign performance agreement and Memorandum relations, marine pollution and certain specific of Understanding (MoU) with the Government safety matters. as shareholder. SAMSA’s main functions are to: •provide shipping competence and pollution South African National services in a regional context Roads Agency Ltd •manage marine incidents, casualties and The SANRAL was created out of the need wrecks, and participate in search-and- for the national Department of Transport rescue missions to separate its roles as policy-maker and •control standby tugs and pollution stores operator. The SANRAL, a commercially driven •maintain seafarers according to standards of company with the Minister of Transport as its training and staffing criteria single shareholder, manages and operates the •provide a shipping-administration support national road network on behalf of govern- service ment. •manage the registration of ships

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•manage a coastal patrol service charged with promoting, regulating and •manage vessel traffic, including navigation enforcing civil aviation safety and security. aids The primary purpose of the CAA is to •provide lighthouse services. promote, regulate and support high levels of Funding comes from, among others, levies on safety throughout the civil aviation industry. Its ships calling at South African ports, direct user core activities relate to overseeing aviation charges, and government service fees. safety for operations, aircraft, personnel, air- ports and airspace. The CAA receives transfers Cross-Border Road as subsidies and user charges for Ministerial Transport Agency directives on aircraft-accident investigations. The Agency regulates and controls access to These declined from R10 million in 2000/01 to the cross-border road-transport market by R5,4 million in 2002/03. In the medium term, the road-transport industry. It also aims to they are projected to grow to R6,4 million by facilitate the establishment of co-operative 2005/06. and consultative relationships and structures The CAA receives most of its revenue from between public and private-sector institutions, industry-user fees and levies. with an interest in cross-border transport. The CBRTA is furthermore involved in the Transnet Limited collection, processing and dissemination of relevant information; the provision of training Transnet Limited was established on 1 April and capacity-building; and the promotion of 1990. It is a public company, of which the entrepreneurship, with the focus on SMMEs South African Government is the sole share- with an interest in cross-border road transport. holder. The company is recognised as a dom- The functions of the Agency include: inant player in the southern African transport •advising the Minister of Transport on cross-infrastructure. Its activities are not restricted to border transport matters and assisting in the southern Africa but extend beyond its borders process of negotiating and renegotiating into Africa and the rest of the world. cross-border road-transport agreements on It handles 176 million tons (Mt) of rail freight request per year, 2,8 Mt road freight and 194 Mt of •regulating the road-transport industry’s freight through the harbours, while 13,8 million access to the cross-border road-transport litres (ML) are pumped through its petrol market pipelines annually. •facilitating ongoing co-operative and consul- The company through South African Airways tative relationships and structures between (SAA) flies 6,1 million domestic, regional and the public and private sectors in support of international passengers per year. In total, cross-border road-transport operations Transnet is worth R72 billion in fixed assets and •undertaking road-transport law enforce- has a workforce of some 80 000 employees. ment. Transnet Limited consists of nine main The main source of income for the CBRTA is divisions, a number of subsidiaries and related fees charged for cross-border permits. businesses: •Spoornet focuses on the transportation of Civil Aviation Authority freight, containers and mainline passengers The CAA was established on 1 October 1998 by rail following the enactment of the CAA Act, •the National Ports Authority (NPA) focuses 1998 (Act 40 of 1998). The Act provides for the on the provision of total port infrastructure establishment of a stand-alone authority and marine-related services, the manage-

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ment of port activities in a landlord capacity, The Department continues to work on and the regulation of the port systems improving the road network, ensuring that it is •South African Port Operations (SAPO) focus-well-maintained and safe. A new National es on port-terminal and cargo operations in Roads Plan is being developed, indicating the commercially viable business units importance of roads to the economy. •Petronet focuses on the transportation The South African road network comprises of petroleum products and gas through a some 534 076 km of roads and streets. high-pressure long-distance pipeline network Responsibility for the network is carried by •Freightdynamics is a strategic road-freight the Department with SANRAL, the nine business with a national network of opera- provinces, and local authorities. tions The national road system links all the major •Propnet manages a profitable property centres in the country to one another as development, and handles the management well as to neighbouring countries. There is a and investment function of Transnet’s vast national road network of 9 400 km, with plans property portfolio to extend this to 20 000 km of primary roads. •Metrorail is a commuter rail transportToll roads, which are serviced by 31 mainline business toll plazas, cover about 2 200 km. The network •Transtel is the telecommunications unit ofincludes 1 437 km of dual-carriage freeway, Transnet 440 km of single-carriage freeway, and •Transwerk is involved in engineering activities56 967 km of single-carriage main road with and is one of South Africa’s leading manufac- unlimited access. South Africa has the longest turers and refurbishers of railway rolling stock. road network of any country in Africa. The Cabinet approved a five-year road Road transport infrastructure strategy to prevent the further deterioration of the country’s road network. National roads The SANRAL is very involved in improving In terms of the National Roads Act, 1998 (Act the country’s primary road network. Although 7 of 1998), government is responsible for the issue of tolling is very contentious, the overall policy, while road-building and mainte- existing concession roads are combined with nance is the responsibility of SANRAL. a private-sector investment value of R5,2 bil- lion, of which R1,37 billion is in the form of foreign direct investment. Approximately 1 350 km of national roads are being up- In October 2003, Johannesburg International Airport (JIA), Africa’s biggest and busiest airport, graded and maintained without making any was named the Best Airport in Africa for the demands on tax-based revenue. second consecutive year by the Skytrax survey. The Department is developing the Road- The Skytrax survey is one of the largest airport surveys of airline passengers, and is commis- Infrastructure Strategic Framework that will sioned and undertaken by Skytrax of London. give effect to the national vision of road Travellers from 80 countries submitted more than 1,6 million eligible nominations. transport in South Africa, taking into con- The Airports Company South Africa recorded a sideration the socio-economic environment, strong result in the survey, with Cape Town International Airport claiming second position national imperatives, policy goals, institutional and Durban International fifth. arrangements, funding mechanisms, current About 12 million people pass through the JIA realities and future scenarios, as well as the in a year. Air-traffic movements increased by 175 509 needs and perceptions of the road user. The (16%) from 1992 to 2002, and the number of outcome will be a review of the principal passengers had increased by 103% to more than 12 million by 2002. issues facing the development of road

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infrastructure and a sustainable strategy for private-sector involvement. SDIs are recognised the future. as an effective means of stimulating economic In line with the resolution of the Growth and growth by exploiting the existing economic Development Summit held in June 2003, the potential within an area. The Department’s Department has embarked on a new initiative involvement in this project is focused on to integrate labour-intensive road-construction infrastructure provision, BEE, skills transfer and programmes. This initiative aims to mobilise the creation of sustainable jobs. the road subsector to maximise the amount The SDIs are Lubombo, West Coast, Fish of jobs that can be created through labour- River, Maputo Development Corridor, Wild intensive construction methods. Coast, Platinum, Phalaborwa and Richards Bay. This is expected to ensure that the road subsector contributes meaningfully to the Municipal roads Expanded Public Works Programme, which is a The construction and maintenance of most key vehicle for creating jobs for unemployed roads and streets within the municipal bound- people who cannot get access to the formal aries of cities and towns is the responsibility of economy. the municipality concerned. The Minister of Finance, Mr Trevor Manuel, announced at the tabling of the Medium Term Toll roads Budget Policy Statement, in November 2003, Toll roads cover some 2 200 km and are serv- that R20 million would be allocated to the iced by 31 toll plazas, including concessioned Department of Transport for urgent road repair roads. at a number of border posts. The viability of every toll road is determined over a 30-year period to assess the private- Provincial roads sector funding which can be sustained and The planning, construction and maintenance served. The performance of all toll roads is of roads and bridges, other than those falling within the forecast, and in many cases roads under the SANRAL or local governments, is the perform better than forecast. It is envisaged responsibility of provincial governments. The that all new major toll-road projects will be national Department of Transport is always financed through the Build, Operate and ready to assist provincial and local govern- Transfer principle. This allows greater private- ments to improve and develop the state of sector involvement in the financing, building, their roads. operation and maintenance of toll projects. It is estimated that the funding required When the concession period expires, the facil- to address the backlog for rural roads is ity is transferred back to the State at no cost. R56 billion for all provincial roads and Construction of the N4 Maputo Corridor Toll R8 billion for roads under the National Roads Road has been completed and includes Agency. 70 km of new road, 112 km of rehabilitation, Provincial budgets for infrastructure and road and 240 km of road-widening. The new Road development increased by 7,5% from R4,7 bil- is one of the few privately financed cross- lion in 2002/03 to R5,1 billion in 2003/04. border toll roads in the world. Ownership of the N4 Maputo Corridor Toll Road, for which Spatial Development Trans African Concessions is the concession- Initiatives (SDIs) aire for 30 years, will revert to the South The SDI programme uses public resources – African and Mozambican Governments after particularly project planning, scoping and the concession agreement expires. It is the logistical co-ordination skills – to leverage first international toll road in Africa.

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The Bakwena Platinum Highway near 2010, depending on the traffic volumes at that Rustenburg, which closes the link between time. the Maputo Harbour in Mozambique and Toll roads funded by the SANRAL include Walvis Bay in Namibia, is the first high-quality the N1-South extension in the Free transcontinental route in sub-Saharan Africa. State between Kroonstad, Welkom and The road reduces export and shipping times Bloemfontein, at an investment value of about by as much as 10 shipping days, while the R180 million. Future projects in this category distance by road between Johannesburg and include an N17-East toll road in Gauteng and Windhoek is shortened by some 500 km. Mpumalanga; N4 East toll road below the Hans Other benefits of the Highway include Strijdom offramp, outside Pretoria and the injecting R3 billion into the economy, creating Gauteng-Mpumalanga border; and an N1 3 000 direct jobs during the construction North extension in Limpopo. The roads’ total period, and opening doors for foreign direct investment value is estimated at R863 million. investment. A new toll road was expected to be erected An analysis of the project also revealed that between Empangeni and Richards Bay in the project would contribute at least R2,2 bil- KwaZulu-Natal in 2003. The R1,2-billion project lion per annum to the Gross Domestic Product. includes the design, construction, financing, Of this amount, at least 61% (R1,35 billion) will operation and maintenance of a 19,2-km manifest in the region itself. stretch of the John Ross toll highway. The project was also named ’Deal of the Year’ by adjudicators under the auspices of Road-traffic signs Project Finance International. A revised road-traffic-sign system, which Construction on the N3 toll road com- closely conforms to international standards, menced in 1999, on the 418-km road from has been phased in since November 1993. Heidelberg in Gauteng to Cedara in KwaZulu- The revised system involves changes to the Natal. The Harrismith section of the road has colours of some of the regulatory and all of the been open to the public since April 2001, warning signs, changes in design parameters, while the Heidelberg-Villiers section opened in the modernisation of text and symbols, and December 2001. the addition of new signs, signals and This project injected R3,5 billion into the markings. Many of the new signs make use economy, of which a payment of R1,38 billion of symbols rather than text to eliminate allowed government to excise its debt obliga- language problems and reduce observation tion. The project includes a 100-km section time. over the De Beers Pass, which will be built in South Africa prepared a road-signs manual for the SADC in terms of the 1998 Protocol on Transport, Communications and Meteorology. South Africa has since started phasing in new SADC-aligned signs on its roads and other South Africa hosted the Paris-based Independ- cross-border roads. The previous system was ent Association of Road Congresses’ (PIARC) 22nd World Road Congress in Durban from 19 to concurrently legal with the new system until 25 October 2003. 31 December 2000, by which date all the old The aim of the Congress was to promote signs had to be phased out and replaced with international co-operation and technology new signs. transfer among members of PIARC, which include 100 countries – two-thirds of which are To simplify the navigation task for tourists, from developing countries — and 2 000 individual foreigners and drivers in unfamiliar areas, as members. well as to promote global uniformity, it was

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agreed that drivers should make use of route Public transport maps (readable in any language) and route numbers to guide them towards their destina- In terms of the Constitution of South Africa, tions (all major routes and main streets in 1996 (Act 108 of 1996), legislative and urban areas are numbered and displayed on executive powers in respect of public transport readily available maps). are a provincial competency. National govern- ment, however, is responsible for policy Credit-card format (CCF) licences formulation, monitoring and strategic imple- The CCF driving licence was introduced on mentation. The national Department of 1 March 1998. A period of five years was deter- Transport continues to administer subsidies mined by Notice in the Government Gazette, for buses and other subsidised forms of for each motorist, based on their birth month, public transport. to apply for the conversion before 31 August 2002. National Transport Register The Department of Transport extended the The establishment of the National Transport deadline for the conversion of the old book- Register is a requirement of the National style driving licence to the CCF to 28 February Land Transport Transition Act, 2000 (Act 22 of 2003. 2000). However, due to an unprecedented number The purpose of the Register is to integrate of outstanding applications, the final deadline the land-transport systems, i.e. the Subsidy- was extended to 30 April 2003. Management System (SUMS), the Land- The CCF driving-licence is valid for five years. Transport Permit System (LTPS) and the Motorists who failed to convert could either Registration Administration System (RAS). The be fined or have their current driving licences primary goal of the LTPS is to facilitate the nullified. issue of public road-carrier permits, to regu- By April 2003, a total of 7 025 million CCF late entry into the road-carrier markets. driving licences had been produced. All driv- The objective is to facilitate the processing ing-licence records are centralised into the of permit applications and enable the Local database of the online National Traffic Road Transportation Boards (Provincial Permit Information System. Boards) to provide an efficient service to the The introduction of modern technology to industry. In achieving this goal, the System limit human intervention in driving-licence supports the Boards with: testing is in line with the strategy to fight fraud •registering applications and corruption. •generating and verifying advertisements By September 2003, the Department was •capturing objections and appeals working on a computerised learner’s-licence •generating agendas testing procedure which involves the use of •verifying vehicle information an audio-visual, user-friendly computerised •generating permits and permit transfers. system to compile test questions and the The primary goal of the RAS is to facilitate the marking of thereof. registration of minibus-taxi associations with The system was expected to be introduced the Provincial Registrar to formalise the indus- at 330 learner driving-license testing centres try. They support the Registrar with: in all 11 official languages. Other technology •registering members and associations in the pipeline will limit human intervention •registering vehicle particulars of members in the process of eye-testing and the capturing •registering corridor particulars of associations of fingerprint information on the CCF. •management reporting.

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The primary goal of the SUMS is to manage and a high percentage of rural and intercity claims received from provincial departments transport. for bus contracts, and to manage payment. The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) is the umbrella body for all Urban transport provincial taxi organisations and strives to Metropolitan Transport Advisory Boards govern regulate, formalise and stabilise the industry. urban areas which have been declared The Council acts as a mediator in disputes metropolitan transport areas. Both short- and between taxi organisations and plays a role in long-term programmes for adequate trans- eliminating the causes of taxi violence. portation development are drawn up by the In May 1999, the Government signed an core city of each area and are revised and MoU with SANTACO, paving the way for the adjusted annually. replacement of the industry’s ageing fleet Nine such core areas exist, namely and its absorption into South Africa’s formal Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria, Durban, economy. Pietermaritzburg, Port Elizabeth, the East Rand, The Memorandum commits SANTACO to Bloemfontein and East London. act against violent elements in the industry, The planning of transport for metropolitan participate in the regulation of the industry by and major urban areas must be done in ensuring its members have legal operations, accordance with a growth-management plan, and implement a programme of acceptable and travel modes should not compete with labour practices. Government, in turn, is each other. In urban areas, passenger road- bound by the Memorandum to find an accept- transport services are provided by local govern- able solution to the industry’s recapitalisation ments, private bus companies which operate crisis, legalise illegal operations within agreed scheduled bus services between peripheral parameters, and provide taxi operators with areas and city centres, and minibus-taxis. extensive training. The Department will support provincial Departments of Transport and Public Works in Taxi Recapitalisation Programme the construction of intermodal facilities and in The aim of the Taxi Recapitalisation Program- their efforts to achieve integration between me is to replace the current ageing taxi bus and taxi operations. fleet with new, safer and purpose-built 18- and The minibus-taxi industry has shown 35-seater vehicles. phenomenal growth during the last few years, In terms of Section 31 of the National Land leading to a decrease in the market share of Transport Transition Act, 2000, the Minister of the bus and train as modes of transport. Transport can determine a date from which existing minibus-taxis will not be used as pub- Motor vehicles lic transport vehicles. On 31 December 2001, there were some Key to the Programme will be a strong 6,9 million registered vehicles in South Africa, empowerment element involving the estab- more than 3,98 million of which were motor lishment of taxi co-operatives to liaise with vehicles. The number of private motor vehicles financiers, distribute the new vehicles, and continues to grow at a rate of 1,7% per annum. provide the facilities for a compulsory mainte- nance programme. The co-operatives will be Minibus-taxis established after extensive consultation with There are close to 127 000 minibus-taxis in local taxi organisations. South Africa, which provide 65% of the 2,5 bil- The aim is to ensure that the new vehicles lion annual passenger trips in urban areas, are manufactured locally, and to tap into

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South Africa’s highly diversified components- and legislative or regulatory changes deemed manufacturing sector. necessary for tighter fleet-safety management. On 8 October 2003, the Pretoria High Court International models being explored empha- granted the KwaZulu-Natal Taxi Council sise the need for a formal safety fitness-rating (KWANATACO) an interdict to prevent SANTACO methodology. A vehicle operator will receive a from signing the Memorandum of Agreement safety rating when an accredited or authorised (MoA) with government. safety specialist conducts an on-site review of KWANATACO contended that it was not the operator’s compliance with applicable properly consulted by SANTACO and therefore safety and hazardous material regulations. In wanted to be part of the decision-making terms of the formal compliance review, the process. operator will then be awarded one of three rat- The MoA deals with frameworks and guide- ings: satisfactory, conditional or unsatisfactory. lines on the implementation of the Programme, To meet safety-fitness standards, the carrier and the relationship between government and will have to demonstrate that it has adequate SANTACO in the implementation process. safety-management controls in place to Government is expected to start roll-out of the reduce the risks associated with: vehicles by mid-2004, with an average delivery •inadequate levels of financial responsibility of approximately 25 000 vehicles per year over •inadequate inspection, repair and mainte- the next four years. nance of vehicles On 8 October 2003, government confirmed •Professional Driver’s Permit standard viola- that the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme tions would proceed as planned. The interdict •the use of unqualified and fatigued drivers brought against SANTACO will not affect •improper use of motor vehicles the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme being •unsafe vehicles operating on highways finalised by government. •failure to maintain collision registers and Subsequent to the court’s interdict, negoti- copies of collision reports ations between government, SANTACO and the •motor-vehicle crashes industry have continued, resulting in collective •driving and parking violations endorsement of the Programme. •violation of hazardous materials regulations. The operator of a vehicle that has received Bus transport an unsatisfactory safety rating will have a A network of public and privately owned specified period of time from the effective date passenger bus services links the major of rating notice to improve the safety rating to centres of South Africa and also serves ’conditional’ or ’satisfactory’. commuters in the deep rural areas. The If these improvements do not occur, the Cabinet has approved measures intended carrier will be prohibited from operating to improve public-transport safety. These commercial motor vehicles or transporting include the intensification of law enforcement, passengers for reward. lowering the maximum speed limit for buses The Department of Transport has been and minibus-taxis to 100 km/h, and a fitness- working closely with the South African Bureau testing programme for buses. of Standards (SABS) to ensure that the emer- An informal consultation process is under gency exits of buses and taxis meet required way with freight and public transport employ- standards and allow passengers to escape ers’ associations and trade unions. This will be without difficulty in emergencies. followed by formal negotiations to build The Department has requested the SABS to consensus around self-regulatory measures pay specific attention to the relevant safety

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standards, adequacy and competence in and which has resulted in the establishment of out of water, day and night. technical working groups for, among others, This includes the ability of young children traffic standards, road-user charges and and the aged to break through emergency passenger transport. windows. The activities of the passenger-transport The SABS has also been requested to look working group led to the establishment of at the locations of all emergency exits and the Joint Route Management Committees (JRMCs) education of passengers on how to use them. for certain cross-border passenger routes The Department has intensified its educa- within the SACU. The JRMCs comprise repre- tion campaign on how to use emergency exits sentatives from the public and private sectors and is engaging manufacturers in ensuring of the countries concerned, and are aimed at that more visible and reflective material are jointly managing the routes in consultation used to identify emergency exits. with all stakeholders. Realising that the majority of small bus operators do not have formalised structures Bilateral which government could consult with on The main thrust of bilateral agreements is to issues that affect the bus industry, a process to facilitate and encourage cross-border road facilitate the formalisation of the industry was transport in support of regional trade. started in 2003. This is promoted through the entrenchment of the principle of extra-territorial jurisdiction, Cross-border transport the entrenchment of a strategic public-private sector relationship, and the establishment of Multilateral consultative mechanisms that are sufficiently The SADC Protocol on Transport, Communi- flexible to promote the joint management of cations and Meteorology provides a compre- implementation. hensive framework for regional integration The Maputo Development Corridor between across the entire spectrum of the transport, South Africa and Mozambique is a good communications and meteorology sectors. The example. general objective is to promote the provision of The two Governments also signed agree- efficient, cost-effective and fully integrated ments dealing with road freight and passenger infrastructure and operations in these fields. transport between the two countries, which The Protocol also specifically addresses will facilitate the movement of goods and road transport, and aims to facilitate the unim- people by road and eliminate bureaucratic peded flow of goods and passengers between proceedings at border posts. and across the territories of SADC member The project also includes the upgrading and states. It wants to promote the adoption of a modernisation of the railway line between the harmonised policy, which lays down general two countries and of Maputo Harbour, at a operational conditions for carriers. cost of about R150 million. Cross-border transport within the Southern During a bilateral meeting with the African Customs Union (SACU) is undertaken South African Minister of Transport, on in terms of the SACU MoU. The Memorandum 24 October 2003, the United Kingdom’s facilitates transport between member Minister of Transport, Mr David Jamieson, countries through, among others, the use of accepted South Africa’s request for assist- the single-permit system. ance on road-traffic management expertise The MoU provides the framework for co- to address the carnage on South Africa’s operation between the signatory countries, roads.

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Both Ministers agreed that there was a need Approximately 80% of all freight carried in for the two countries to work together in South Africa is conveyed by road, while nearly exploring the latest methods and technical 7% of the Gross National Product is spent on skills in an effort to decrease the country’s freight transport. high road-fatality rate. About 69% of road-freight tonnage is carried On 29 September 2003, the Minister of by firms or operators transporting freight in the Transport and his Namibian and Botswana course of their business, and 29% by firms counterparts signed an MoU on the develop- transporting goods for reward. ment and management of the Trans-Kalahari The Department is working with provincial Corridor (TKC). counterparts and major stakeholders on the The TKC was formally established in 1998 Overload-Control Infrastructure Programme following the completion of the Trans- which deals with reckless overloading. The Kgalagadi Highway in Botswana. The TKC links Programme is based on the construction of a the three southern African countries by road. strategic network of traffic-control centres and One of the benefits of the TKC is that it links fixed weigh stations on major roads, support- the hinterlands of Botswana, Namibia and ed by mobile weigh stations on alternative South Africa (especially Gauteng) with the Port roads in the main freight corridors. As part of of Walvis Bay. This Port is the western seabord the Department’s freight-transport strategic port in southern Africa and closest to shipping intervention of promoting a modal shift from routes to and from markets in the Americas road to rail, joint-venture projects with the and Europe. Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal Departments The development of the TKC has the of Transport have been embarked upon to potential of significantly reducing transaction revive rail lines that have been classified as low costs for SADC exporters and importers. This is and light-density lines. expected to enable economic operators to become increasingly internationally competi- Road-traffic safety tive by enhancing their ability to exploit the South Africa’s road-vehicle collision and benefits of preferential trade agreements with fatality rates compare poorly with those of the United States of America (USA) and most other countries. Every year, about 10 000 European Union. people are killed and 150 000 injured in approximately 500 000 accidents. The cost of Domestic road-traffic accidents is estimated at more The CBRTA fosters investment in the cross- than R13 billion a year. border road-transport industry and provides Greater road-safety awareness has been high-quality cross-border freight and passen- generated through the activities of the Arrive ger road transport services at reasonable Alive Campaign, which is part of the Road to prices. The Agency works on a cost-recovery Safety Strategy (2001 – 2005). basis and any profits from cross-border permit The Strategy involves the creation of the fees are ploughed back into the system RTMC that will be responsible for vehicle through a price reduction on permits in the registration, traffic information systems, following financial year. It also encourages public communication and traffic law enforce- small-business development in the industry. ment. The RTMC Act, 1999 (Act 20 of 1999), Goods transport provided for the establishment of the RTMC. Since the mid-1980s, the southern African road Recognising the importance of the regulation transport industry has grown considerably. of public transport and road traffic for the

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development, safety and quality of life of all Strategy (RTMS); assists in the identification, South Africans, the RTMC was created to: formulation and prioritisation of projects; •enhance the overall quality of road-trafficmonitors progress; and gives direction in the management and service provision implementation of the RTMS. The RTSB is •strengthen co-operation and co-ordination made up of members of all three spheres of between the national, provincial and local government as well as traffic stakeholders in spheres of government in the management the private sector. The Ministers of Education, of road traffic of Health, of Justice and Constitutional •maximise the effectiveness of provincial Development, of Provincial and Local and local government efforts, particularly in Government, of Safety and Security and of road-traffic law enforcement Transport serve on the Board. •create business opportunities, particularly Three Acts provide for the national co- for the previously disadvantaged sectors, to ordination of regulation and law enforcement, supplement public-sector capacity the registration and licensing of motor •guide and sustain the expansion of private-vehicles, and the training and appointment of sector investment in road-traffic manage- traffic officers. These are the RTMC Act, 1999 ment. (Act 20 of 1999), the National Road-Traffic The process for adjudicating road-traffic Amendment Act, 1999 (Act 21 of 1999), and offences has been reformed and is now the Administrative Adjudication of Road-Traffic administrative, rather than judicial. The Road Offences Amendment Act, 1999 (Act 22 of Traffic Infringement Agency will serve as the 1999). collection agency for outstanding traffic fines The Administrative Adjudication of Road- and adjudicate contested traffic offences. This Traffic Offences Amendment Act, 1999 is supposed to be a more efficient and effec- provides for a more efficient system of collect- tive system for administering traffic offences. ing traffic fines and for the introduction of a The Constitution authorises provinces to points demerit system, linked to the CCF exercise legislative and executive powers driver’s licence. In terms of the Act, a pertaining to road-traffic safety, while the motorist’s driver’s licence will be suspended promotion thereof is primarily the responsibili- when he or she has 12 penalty points against ty of the Department of Transport. The Road his or her name. For every point over and Traffic Safety Board (RTSB) endorses and acts above 12, the motorist’s licence will be as guardian of the Road Traffic Management suspended for three months. Points can easily be accumulated, for example, four points each for exceeding the speed limit by 50%, driving an unregistered vehicle, refusing to undergo a blood or breathalyser test, or driving a vehicle The eighth International Symposium on Heavy- Vehicle Weights and Dimensions will be held in without registration plates. The use of hand- South Africa from 14 to 18 March 2004. held cellphones in vehicles is not allowed and The theme of the Symposium, an inter- continental forum for researchers, policy-makers non-compliance could cost a motorist two and industry leaders in the field of freight points. transportation by road, is Loads, Roads and the When a licence is suspended for a third Information Highway. The issues expected to be discussed are time, it will be cancelled and the motorist will safety, maintenance, efficiency, vehicle configura- again have to undergo a driver’s test. In more tion and components, economic and operational serious cases, a court may forbid a motorist to issues, standards and regulations, emissions, fuels, life cycle and recycling as well as the effect drive on a public road ever again. However, the of heavy vehicles on pavements. system in no way detracts from the accused’s

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constitutional right to a fair trial. The points roads are pedestrians. Pedestrian road-safety demerit system is to be implemented in messages are being featured on billboards phases. and a contract was negotiated with the Premier Soccer League to advertise road- Arrive Alive safety messages on screens in big soccer Government’s Arrive Alive Road-Safety Cam- stadiums. paign aims to: The remedial engineering projects are •reduce the number of road-traffic accidentssupported by appropriate education efforts in general, and fatalities in particular, by aimed at adults and children, and by public 5%, compared with the same period the awareness and enforcement campaigns to previous year ensure compliance with the new or changed •improve road-user compliance with traffic facilities. The Council for Scientific and laws Industrial Research is responsible for the •forge an improved working relationship evaluation of these 90 projects and for between traffic authorities in the various preparing a report on the effectiveness of the spheres of government. Campaign. Greater attention is being given to pedestrian South Africa’s rate of pedestrian fatalities is safety, as 40% of deaths on South African unacceptably high. Factors that have exagger- ated the problem in South Africa include lack of infrastructure such as adequate pavements or road-crossing facilities, lack of education in road usage, a traffic mix with vehicles and On 13 October 2003, the Minister of Transport, Mr Dullah Omar, launched a pilot project of the pedestrians sharing the road, poor town and National Public Traffic Call Centre in Limpopo. transport planning of facilities such as schools The Public Traffic Call Centre aims to give easy and community halls, and an absence of law access to all public road-transport passengers enforcement. on buses and minibus-taxis to report unsafe vehicles and reckless and negligent driver Important strides have been made in behaviour, as well as fraud and corruption. integrating road-safety awareness education The Call Centre will also provide the public into the mainstream school curriculum, as a road-user with the opportunity to report blatant moving violations, such as ignoring red traffic lights set of basic life skills that can be continuously and illegal and unsafe overtaking and overloading, expanded and deepened over time. as well as fraud and corruption at vehicle-testing The implementation of road-safety edu- stations and driving-licence testing centres. cation has been planned and prepared in Incidents and accidents can also be reported to the Centre, which will also be a source of detail by task teams from the Departments of limited road-traffic information, such as road and Transport and of Education. traffic conditions. Reports on courteous, good Pupils at pre-school level through to 9 are and helpful driver-behaviour can also be being exposed to systematic, practical road- submitted. The information collected by the Centre will safety education within the framework of the be utilised for advising the registered owner of ’life-skills’ component of their curriculum. the vehicle, by letter, of the nature and location During April 2003, the Cabinet approved a of the alleged offence. The Centre will prepare and distribute reports number of priority projects to deal with the to the South African Police Service and relevant scourge of road accidents in the country. traffic authorities on the routes and/or locations These included Integrated Law Enforce- where stolen vehicles and vehicles with false ment, the establishment of a Central Accident registration plates were observed, where regular traffic offences occur, and where cases of fraud Bureau, and Visibility and Community-Based and corruption were observed. Co-ordinating Structures.

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Road-traffic control been appointed to date, due to constraints in The Department of Transport is responsible for terms of their powers, duties and responsibili- co-ordinating and harmonising traffic control ties with regard to the Criminal Procedure Act, (law enforcement) in South Africa. This is done 1997 (Act 51 of 1997). However, the matter is in conjunction with the provinces, which have being investigated. legislative and executive powers in this regard. Generally, traffic wardens fulfil their duties The aim is to enhance traffic quality, promote within local and municipal traffic authorities. voluntary compliance of road users with rules Provincial authorities are expected to appoint and regulations, reduce the incidence of traffic more full-time traffic officers to fulfil all the offences, prevent accidents, ensure effective tasks required of a traffic law-enforcement adjudication, and implement improved officer. management. An important facet of the Department’s Road Accident Fund (RAF) work is the development of a standardised The RAF compensates victims of motor- management system for traffic control at vehicle accidents under the terms and condi- micro level, to assist traffic authorities in tions provided for in the relevant legislation. managing their internal and external environ- The Fund receives a dedicated RAF levy, which ments optimally, and to achieve the highest is imposed on petrol and diesel. levels of traffic quality, subject to the limited The Fund is in regular contact with the availability of resources. National Treasury and Department of Transport The traffic-management model has been on proposed increases dependent upon implemented by approximately 100 provincial the number of claims received, as recent and local traffic authorities. trends have seen a mismatch between the Road-traffic law enforcement is the respon- Fund’s revenue from the levy and the amount sibility of the respective local and provincial required to settle all the claims lodged. The traffic authorities as well as metro police Fund has proposed a quarterly review of the services in metropolitan areas. Vehicles are levy to keep pace with the cost of claims allocated to shifts and specifically designated received. tasks, e.g. road patrols. In some provinces, two The RAF Commission, appointed by govern- officers are allocated to a vehicle, while in ment to recommend improvements to the other provinces, one officer may be allocated accident-compensation system, has proposed to a vehicle. The time of day also plays a role, the introduction of a no-fault system under a e.g. night operations require at least two completely new body. officers per vehicle for security reasons. The RAF has proposed a more evolutionary Roadblocks are held on a continuous basis approach starting with legislative amendments by provincial and local traffic authorities. to stabilise the current system, while a no-fault Roadblocks take many forms, from formal system is being considered for the long term. joint roadblocks with the South African Police This is informed by the fact that a no-fault Service (SAPS), the South African National system would require billions of Rand more Defence Force (SANDF) and other role-players, than the current system and lengthy prepara- to standard driver and vehicle roadside tory work before it can be implemented. checks, run by traffic officers to check on Some of the most critical legislative amend- driving licences, alcohol usage by drivers, ments proposed by the RAF to normalise the vehicle licences, tyres, lights, brakes, outstand- financial position of the current system are: ing fines, etc. •instalments rather than lump-sum payments No reservist traffic officers or volunteers have in some categories of compensation

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•caps on non-residents’ claims claim directly without using attorneys as inter- •introduction of medical tariffs and provisionmediaries. of managed healthcare. In 2002, at least five million information Steps not requiring legislative amendments to sheets in all the official languages were distrib- improve the cash flow of the RAF include uted countrywide. By the end of 2003, at least investment in road safety – principally through 12 new information offices were expected to Arrive Alive — to limit the high number of acci- be opened nationally, to educate the public dents in the country. about the Fund, assist claimants to lodge Since 2001, the RAF has been vigorously claims on their own without using attorneys, fighting fraud and corruption bedevilling the and update claimants on the status of their system. A new claims-management system claims. has been introduced to detect fraud, and forensic-investigation partnerships with the Rail transport SAPS and the Scorpions have resulted in the arrest of hundreds of people. The Department has embarked on a com- All RAF staff undergo security clearances prehensive recapitalisation programme to before appointment, and staff involved in fraud improve rail safety and revive rail transport as and corruption are dealt with severely. a viable public-transport alternative. In 2003, the RAF introduced a project called Two contracts were entered into with the Tip-Offs Anonymous, which allows members of industry to refurbish 236 coaches at a cost of the public to report fraudulent behaviour and R615 million over two years, with final delivery service-providers who approach them and try expected at the end of 2003. to convince them to defraud the RAF. The South African Rail Commuter Corpora- The RAF has also embarked on a campaign tion (SARCC) ensured, through its Tender Policy to inform all South Africans on their right to and Procedures, that the allocation of the compensation, and to encourage them to refurbishment coaches to suppliers signifi- cantly contributed to BEE, while maintaining acceptable standards of safety and comfort. A total of R884 million has been invested in The Gautrain Rapid Rail Link project aims to the upgrading, remodelling and refurbishment alleviate the severe traffic congestion in the Johannesburg-Tshwane corridor – a corridor in of rail commuter stations countrywide over the which the traffic volume is growing at 7% per past few years. year. It is forecasted that the initial demand for A further R1,6 billion of private-sector invest- the Gautrain service will be 104 000 passenger- trips per day. ments, covering more than 120 developments, The key objectives of the Gautrain Project has also been allocated for upgrading land and include economic growth, development and job properties surrounding rail commuter stations. creation, alleviation of traffic congestion, promotion of business tourism, and the The cumulative total economic impact of job improvement of city sustainability. creation and economic activity through the A feasibility study showed that 57 000 jobs Station Investment Programme exceeded would be created during construction, 2 200 jobs would be created as part of the operation R3,7 billion. The SARCC, in consultation with and maintenance of the system, and 39 500 representatives of communities and the would further be created as part of the urban informal traders sector, has commenced a change. It also indicated a projected R6-billion increase in business sales, which would con- programme to turn the stations into major tribute to an increase of between 0,7% and 1% in community and economic hubs contributing the Gauteng Gross Geographic Product. The preferred bidder was expected to be to the economic development of South Africa. announced in January 2004. In 2002, the Department of Transport, the

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SARCC and Metrorail developed a new two- authorities on their obligations and rights pronged Safety and Security Strategy for the relative to commuter rail. Most of the bigger rail commuter system. cities have already started processes to ensure The Strategy has been implemented, as a the establishment of appropriate structures, pilot project, in the entire Western Cape such as metropolitan transport authorities to Metropolitan rail network since October 2002 control commuter-rail concessions within their with very positive results. sphere of authority. On the technical and institutional side, the system involves alarms, and helicopter surveil- Spoornet lance capability for the co-ordination of safety Spoornet is the largest division of Transnet, a and security actions. Improved co-ordination commercialised business with the State as between rail security efforts and SAPS inter- shareholder. Spoornet’s core business lies ventions is a priority and forms an integral part in Freight Logistics Solutions (FLS) designed of the total Strategy. for customers in numerous industry-based Based on the assessment of the pilot business segments, mining, and heavy and project, the Strategy is expected to be rolled light manufacturing sectors. out to other metropolitan rail commuter Spoornet is the largest railroad and heavy networks across the country. haulier in southern Africa, with an annual The second element of the Strategy is that turnover of R9 billion generated by the trans- of engaging communities along the rail portation of 180 Mt of freight. The company has corridors to protect rail assets, by promoting a 60% market share of the 170 billion Mt km the concept of ‘community ownership’. The cargo available in South Africa. To serve these system draws the community to assist rail markets, it utilises some 30 600 km of track, security personnel and the SAPS in proactive- 3 253 locomotives and 114 433 wagons, and ly identifying and neutralising criminal ele- 2 102 passenger coaches. ments. Spoornet maintains an extensive rail net- The National Railway Safety Regulator Act, work across South Africa and connects with 2002 (Act 16 of 2002), is the enabling rail networks in the sub-Saharan region. Its legislation for the setting up of an independent infrastructure represents 80% of Africa’s rail Railway Safety Regulator, reporting and infrastructure. accountable to the Minister of Transport. Spoornet’s future investment in infrastructure The Regulator will oversee safety by means will be focused on renewal and where of conducting audits and inspections; under- appropriate, capacity expansion. Significant taking occurrence investigations; analysing parts of infrastructure, namely signalling and occurrence statistics, operator safety plans and electrification infrastructure, are reaching the accident reports; and issuing notices to opera- end of their design lifespans. Renewal is expect- tors to cease an activity or to improve an ed to concentrate on the application of new, unsafe activity. Failure to respond to a notice cheaper and more effective technologies. could result in the operator, including the Planned investment expenditure for the next top management and even the board, being 15 years is about R1 billion per annum to prosecuted. address the estimated backlog of R15 billion. The Board of the Railway Safety Regulator was inaugurated in the second half of 2003. Freight Logistics Solutions The implementation of the National Land In line with current market demands, Transport Transition Act, 2000 resulted in a Spoornet’s vision is to be the leader in FLS. To focus by newly elected metropolitan or unicity achieve this vision, the company has devolved

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from its rail competencies to warehousing, market. Mercer Management Consultants transport (including long haul, trans-shipment benchmarked the coal-line operation in 1994 and feeder services), inventory management, against similar operations worldwide. The freight forwarding, clearing and other logistical study rated the bulk export logistics supply services. Logistics incorporates all the freight chain as 8% more efficient than global best transportation modes such as road, rail, air- practice. freight, ocean and barge. It includes warehous- A major milestone in the history of the coal- ing, inventory management, fleet operations, export industry in South Africa was reached in freight forwarding and customs-brokerage December 2000 when the billionth ton of coal services. The software and information was transported over the coal line and export- technology used to support the flow of goods ed through the Richards Bay Coal Terminal. to market is also part of the logistics mix. The coal line celebrated 25 years of existence Spoornet consists of five business units, in April 2001. each with its own core business focus. Orex General Freight Business (GFB) Orex, a specialist business unit of Spoornet, GFB is the largest Spoornet business unit in deals in the haulage of iron ore over the terms of revenue, customer accounts and the 861-km track from Sishen to Saldanha Bay. number of people employed. It handles in The line is dedicated to the movement of iron excess of 52% of Spoornet’s freight tonnage per ore from the mines in the far Northern Cape to annum. the steel industries in the Western Cape, and GFB conveys about 96 Mt of commodity for the export of the ore through the Port of freight a year, serving customers in specialised Saldanha Bay. The success of this bulk logis- diverse industrial commodity markets, namely tics operation depends on close co-operation mining, and light and heavy manufacturing. with the Port and its facilities. Structures provide for a sales force dedicated The average tonnage of iron ore transported to customers in specific business sectors per year increased from 17,5 Mt for the period under a relationship/one-on-one philosophy. 1990/92 to 1994/95, to 21,6 Mt for 1999/00. A benchmark study rated this seamless COALlink operation as 38% more efficient than global COALlink focuses on the provision of world- best practice. class transportation for South Africa’s export Orex not only transports iron ore, but has coal, from the Mpumalanga coalfields to the also become an international player in provid- Richards Bay Coal Terminal at the Port of ing a diverse range of heavy-haul logistics Richards Bay. solutions for growing local and international Coal exports constitute an integral part of markets. The line celebrated its 25th anniver- the South African export industry. South Africa sary in May 2001. is second only to Australia in terms of tons of coal exported. South Africa is the world leader Shosholoza Meyl in terms of steam-coal exports. COALlink was Shosholoza Meyl provides an affordable formed in 1997 through the ring-fencing of the intercity passenger service between major rail operation over the coal-export line, and destinations in South and southern Africa. augmenting the structure with a business Approximately four million passengers utilise component and other support functions. This this service per year. initiative ensured that South Africa remains at It operates daily long-distance passenger the forefront of the world steam-coal export services between Johannesburg, Durban, East

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London, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, wine list has, for the past few years, consistent- Kimberley and Cape Town. Services also con- ly received the Annual Diners Club Award of nect main centres in South Africa with desti- Approval. nations in southern Africa, namely Bulawayo in A lounge car at the rear of the Train comple- Zimbabwe, Maputo in Mozambique, and ments the Blue Train experience, by allowing Mbabane, Swaziland. guests to use it as an observation car. The Shosholoza Meyl ensures access for any observation car is designed to be converted person or enterprise that wishes to charter from a lounge into a 22-seater conference a train. Significant time and effort are spent facility with computer, overhead projection, on the design of the train service to fit each video and slide facilities. client’s needs and requirements. The type of The Blue Train travels from Pretoria to Cape coaches that can be hired varies from Town, the Victoria Falls and Hoedspruit, and on traditional sleeper coaches to lounge cars, the famous Garden Route between Port dining cars, and open-plan coaches that can Elizabeth and Cape Town. be used for parties or lecture rooms. For the LuxRail also manages contracts with other more selective traveller, Shosholoza Meyl luxury-train operators utilising Spoornet’s offers a new class of travel called Premier infrastructure, such as Rovos Rail and Spier on Classe. It consists of two sleeping coaches and the wine route in the Western Cape. one dining/lounge car for the exclusive use of these guests. The sleeping coaches and air- Social-investment activities conditioned lounge/dining car can accommo- Spoornet contributes to the social fabric of date up to 20 people. South Africans. Notable social-investment In April 2003, Shosholoza Meyl’s facilities at activities include the following: AIDS awareness, Johannesburg’s Park Station were relaunched, Mr ChooChoo Safety Education Campaign, the after being upgraded at a cost of R50 million. Spoornet Rugby Excellence Programme, and The upgrading of the Station and the Pretoria Saturday schools for Spoornet employees’ and Durban platforms focused on improving children, which improve their performance in passenger flow, baggage handling, communi- mathematics and science, and offer supple- cation, a passenger-information system and mentary courses such as study skills, career access control from waiting areas to the guidance and computer literacy. These classes platforms and trains. are designed to support the national school Shosholoza Meyl requires an additional curriculum. R450 million to refurbish coaches that are on average 25 years old. It receives an annual Metrorail R175-million subsidy from Spoornet. Metrorail, a division of Transnet, is tasked with the operation of the SARCC’s assets to LuxRail provide an efficient commuter service. LuxRail’s primary focus is on the prestigious Metrorail ser-vices urban areas only. It operation of the Blue Train and caters for a operates in the Witwatersrand area, Pretoria, growing international tourist market. For over the Western Cape, Durban, Port Elizabeth half a century, South Africa’s Blue Train has and East London. enjoyed an international reputation as one of Metrorail operations have made steady the world’s paramount travelling experiences. progress in implementing far-reaching efficien- It was voted the world’s leading luxury train by cy-improvement projects. This has enabled some 250 000 travel agents in 181 countries Metrorail to save the fiscus about 70% of the at the 2001 World Travel Awards. The Blue Train projected savings of R108 million. At the same

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time, it has produced healthy returns to its for the people of South Africa. It falls shareholder. directly under the Department of Transport but Together with the SARCC, major safety has its own autonomous board of control. It projects have been identified, and significant owns all the commuter rail infrastructure and portions of the R355-million capital fund will be its rolling stock is valued at R70 billion. Its spent on refurbishing or renewing safety-critical main sources of revenue are subsidies to signalling installations. The investment in the cover operational losses and capital expendi- refurbishment of rolling stock is continuing, and ture. the increased infrastructural investment, as The Corporation received a R366-million announced by the Ministers of Finance and operational subsidy and R490,2-million capital Transport, should also see improvements in subsidy in 2001/02. The SARCC operates other parts of the railway infrastructure. two major businesses – Rail Commuter The Department has developed a strategic Services and Property Management. Rail framework for the concessioning of rail Commuter Services is operated as a social services – the current Metrorail service responsibility programme requiring consider- contract is already based on concessioning able government subsidisation. The assets that principles. were transferred to the SARCC included prop- The Minister of Transport announced that erty with a net potential of R2 000 million in concessioning would not occur during 2003 as the main metropolitan areas. originally planned. This is to give the country an The Corporation’s role as concessionaire is opportunity to review the principles around to establish and monitor service standards, concessioning, and develop a programme to safety and security levels, and operating address the challenges around infrastructure- efficiencies. More than two million people use investment in the railway industry. It also has the commuter rail service daily. implications for the pilot concessioning project The SARCC has 478 commuter train stations that was due to start in 2002. In the meantime, in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Metrorail and the SARCC continue to conduct Town. their relationship in terms of a business The White Paper on National Transport agreement that is firmly based on worldwide Policy will lead to far-reaching changes in the concessioning principles. way commuter rail services are structured in Metrorail is responsible for some 17% of future. According to the White Paper, public all public transport in South Africa, which and private operators will in future be able to amounts to transporting approximately two bid competitively for the right to operate a rail million people to and from work daily. It serves line, service or network concession. 473 stations with 2 400 train services. This has meant a change in the mission of Operating assets to the value of R69 million the SARCC to one that ensures the ’provision are managed on behalf of the State. of effective, efficient and sustainable rail These include mobile ticket-selling points, commuter services under concessioning customer-care programmes for all frontline agreements’. staff, station upgrades, and a zone-fare struc- ture. Intersite Faced with managing a property portfolio South African Rail of more than 478 stations worth some Commuter Corporation R2,6 billion, the SARCC formed a property- The SARCC is a State corporation, established management company in 1992, called in 1990 to provide commuter rail services Intersite Property Management Services, to

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perform this task on its behalf. Intersite aims Lanseria, Gateway (Polokwane), Kruger to develop railway stations into transport Mpumalanga and Upington. nodes that link taxi, bus and rail services in an The Kruger Mpumalanga International integrated public-transport system. Airport, near Nelspruit, is the most recent Since 1990, Intersite has completed 61 sta- addition, having been officially opened in tion upgrades at a cost of R414 million. Nine October 2002. The Airport is run by the were completed in the Western Cape at a cost international power and automation group of R75 million, 10 in the Eastern Cape at ABB. In April 2003, the Cabinet approved R9 million, eight in KwaZulu-Natal at R60 mil- the status of the Kruger Mpumalanga lion, seven in northern Gauteng at R40 million, Airport as an international airport. The and 27 in southern Gauteng at R230 million. Airport was opened in October 2002 and is Several intermodal transport facilities were expected to receive international flights also completed. from Europe, the USA and the East. It The objectives of interchange develop- assumed the international status of the ments are to create an intermodal road/rail/ smaller Nelspruit Airport, which was down- bus/taxi transport environment for the graded to national status. commuting public, to enhance commuter rail The Airports Company of South Africa stations and precincts, and to support (ACSA), which was officially established on 23 government initiatives to integrate all modes July 1993, owns and operates South Africa’s of transport. nine principal airports, including the three Money earned from the commercial aspects major international airports in Johannesburg, of Intersite’s developments is ploughed back Cape Town and Durban. to reduce the subsidy provided by govern- ACSA also operates the Pilanesberg ment. International Airport in the North West on a concession basis. Before the formation of Civil aviation ACSA, airports countrywide were owned and operated by the State. Airports In April 1998, Aeroporti di Roma (ADR), an The Cabinet approved the Green Paper on Italian airport-management firm, won a National Policy on Airports and Airspace competitive bid to become ACSA’s strategic Management in February 1998. The document equity partner, and paid R819 million for 20% lays down principles for the development of of the company’s shares. airports, calls for the sustainability of ACSA’s flagship development, the new public-owned airports to be assessed and for R750-million domestic terminal at Johannes- action to be taken where necessary. The Green burg International Airport (JIA), was opened for Paper establishes criteria, ranging from operations in March 2003. economic activity to the implementation of This is the largest terminal in Africa and air-traffic control that should be used to will increase the Airport’s total capacity to determine which airports could be named as more than 18 million passengers annually. possible international airports. JIA is ACSA’s success story and accounts for International airports are those airports over half of the throughput of all ACSA where the necessary facilities and services airports. It has overtaken Cairo in terms of exist to accommodate international flights. passenger traffic. Passenger traffic has The current international airports are: climbed steadily over the past couple of years, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, with the figures now averaging 12 million Bloemfontein, Port Elizabeth, Pilanesberg, passengers a year.

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The Airport’s greatest success lies in its A national Ministerial committee, which commercial transformation. The dramatic includes the Ministers of Trade and Industry, of R210-million duty-free retail mall contributed Finance, of Transport and of Public Enterprises, largely to JIA increasing its net operating has been established to drive implementation income by more than 120%, fuelled by growth and guide the detailed business plan and in non-aeronautical revenues over three times financial structuring of the project. greater than aeronautical revenues. By 2007, ACSA is expected to have spent Cape Town International Airport now boasts R185 million on infrastructural developments a world-class international terminal with at the seven smaller airports. Port Elizabeth, capacity for up to five million passengers a year. the largest and busiest of the seven, will ACSA has committed R1 billion to the receive the bulk of the capital expenditure upgrading and development of Cape Town amounting to R88 million for, among other International Airport, including extensions to things, a new instrument landing system (ILS), existing terminal buildings, the construction of terminal upgrade, and equipment upgrade parkades, two new satellite terminals, and an and replacement. The terminal upgrade was expanded runway system. expected to be completed in April 2004. Cape Town International’s new R120-million The ACSA will spend about R14 million on international departures terminal, officially Bloemfontein Airport for terminal revamp, opened in February 2003, boasts a total area upgrade of fire-fighting equipment, as well as of 21 000 m2 – of which 2 360 m2 is retail runway rehabilitation, while the East London space, accommodating 13 shops. The new Airport will receive R23 million for a new ILS terminal is capable of accommodating up to and fire-fighting equipment. 1 300 passengers in peak hours, or a million Kimberley and George Airports will each passengers a year, which is three times the receive R6 million for terminal refurbishment, capacity of the previous departures terminal. replacement and upgrade of equipment, and The terminal building at Durban Inter- R17 million for terminal upgrade, an ILS, and national Airport has been upgraded with the equipment replacement. reconfiguration of the international and Given its strong although seasonal freight domestic terminal into an arrivals and depart- traffic, about R14 million has been budgeted ures terminal. Parking facilities have also for cargo-apron extension, fire fighting and been revamped and upgraded. general equipment replacement, while In April 2002, Cabinet decided that the R21 million has been set aside for strengthen- Durban International Airport will relocate to La ing of the runway, terminal extension and Mercy, about 50 km outside Durban. equipment improvement at Pilanesberg Construction of the new Airport, to be known International Airport. as the King Shaka International Airport, is set to The Air-Traffic Navigation Service (ATNS) is begin in early 2004. responsible for the efficient running of South The new Airport forms part of the planned Africa’s air-traffic control systems and the R2,2-billion Dube Trade Port at La Mercy. The maintenance of navigation equipment, which project incorporates an Industrial Develop- includes the deployment of air-traffic con- ment Zone (IDZ), a cyberport and a multimodal trollers and aviation technical staff. transport node. A joint operations centre at the JIA is the About R100 billion was budgeted for capital nerve centre of all airport communications expenditure in the Medium Term Expenditure and operations. Framework. The amount included R55 billion From here, all activities related to main- for infrastructure projects. tenance and building management are co-

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ordinated. The centre serves as a control office, Aviation safety in South Africa was audited by crisis control centre for emergencies, and the ICAO at the Minister’s request. The ICAO’s information technology centre. recommendations are currently being imple- The ATNS will increase the number of air- mented. South Africa is also participating in the traffic controllers at the airport by 30% over development and establishment of an Upper the next 13 months. Airspace Control Centre for the SADC. This initiative proposes that a single centre hosted Scheduled airlines by a SADC state will provide air-navigation services to all aircraft flying above 24 500 feet. Domestic services The ATNS is working on upgrading ageing Twenty scheduled domestic airlines are radar display and processing systems at the currently licensed to provide air services JIA. The upgrade will expand control centres within South Africa. These airlines provide countrywide and incorporate ‘automatic internal flights, which link up to the internal sequencing’ of traffic into Johannesburg and and international networks of South African Cape Town. This will ensure separation and a Airways (SAA), British Airways (BA)/Comair, consistent flow of arrivals, which in turn will Interair, SA Express and SA Airlink. enhance efficiency and reduce costs for air- lines. The total cost of the project, which is International services due for completion in 2004, is R228 million. SAA, BA/Comair, SA Express, SA Airlink and By early June 2003, SAA, SA Airlink and Interair operate scheduled air services within British Airways/Comair all operated the air- South Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. borne collision-avoidance systems and were In addition to serving Africa, SAA operates ser- fully compliant with all requirements. Other vices to Europe, Latin America and the Far East. South African registered airlines were taking Scheduled international air services are also steps to be compliant by the implementation provided by Air Afrique, Air Austral, Air Botswana, date of 30 June 2003. Air France, Air Gabon, Air Madagascar, Air Emphasis is being placed on improved Malawi, Air Mauritius, Air Namibia, Air Portugal, international access to and from South Africa Air Seychelles, Air Tanzania, Air Zimbabwe, by air, the expansion of the bilateral air- Airlink Swaziland, Alliance Express, BA, services framework, the implementation of the Cameroon Airlines, Delta Airlines, El Al, Egyptair, Yamoussoukro Declaration, effective monitor- Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Ghana Airways, ing of airline activities, and the efficient licens- Iberia, KLM, Kenya Airways, LAM, LTU, Lufthansa, ing and regulation of domestic and internation- MK Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Martinair Holland, al air services. Other aims include promoting: North-West Airlines, Olympic Airways, Quantas, •safer skies: this involves ensuring that Royal Air Maroc, Saudi Arabian Airlines, adequate safety and upper-air space- Singapore Airlines, Swissair, Taag, Thai Inter- control regimes are in place across the national, Turkish Airlines, Uganda Airlines, continent, supported by efficient air-traffic United Airlines, Varig, Virgin Atlantic, Yemenia, and navigational services and systematic Zambian Air Services and Zambian Skyways. human resource development programmes •efficient and effective aviation networks: this Aviation safety and security involves regulating as necessary to make air South Africa complies with the International transport more affordable, creating regional Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) recom- hubs and air-carrier alliances, and support- mended practices on aviation security. South ing one another to establish a high-quality Africa serves on the council of the ICAO. African airports network.

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Ports continent, South Africa’s seven commercial ports have a significant role to play. They Commercial ports play a crucial role in are not only conduits for the imports and South Africa’s transport, logistics and exports of South Africa and neighbouring socio-economic development. Approximately countries, but also serve as hubs for traffic 98% of South Africa’s exports are conveyed by emanating from and destined for the east and sea. west African coasts. The NPA, a division of On 16 September 2003, the Minister of Transnet Limited, is the largest port authority Transport tabled the NPA Bill in the National in greater southern Africa, controlling seven of Assembly. the 16 biggest ports in this region, namely Specific objectives of the Bill are to: Richards Bay, Durban, East London, Port •provide for the establishment of the NPA Elizabeth,to Mossel Bay, Cape Town and own, manage, and control ports on behalf of Saldanha. the State The NPA was born out of the restructuring •provide for the transfer of ports, land of and Portnet, the port-management division of other rights and obligations from Transnet to Transnet. The NPA’s responsibility has been the Authority broadly defined as attending to the mainte- •provide for the establishment of the Portsnance and development of port infrastructure. Regulator The restructuring of Portnet into the NPA and •ensure equity in the access of ports facilitiesSAPO came about after government’s realisa- in a non-discriminating manner tion of the benefits of public and private part- •authorise the NPA to enter into variousnerships. While government plans to retain forms of contracts, including concessions ownership of the country’s port infrastructure, it •provide for the licensing of port servicesis envisaged that individual terminals will ulti- and facilities mately be leased or concessioned to private •authorise the charging of fees operators. •amend other laws that have a bearing onA R4,3-billion investment has been set the activities of the ports. aside for use by the NPA in addressing infra- The Bill has its origin in the White Paper on structural backlog, its primary responsibilities National Commercial Ports Policy, adopted by being landlord and maritime services. the Cabinet in March 2002. Landlord services focus on the needs of The aim of the White Paper is to ensure cargo owners and terminal operators – from affordable, internationally competitive, efficient project conception, to terminal design, assess- and safe port services, based on the applica- ment of environmental factors and the tion of commercial rules in a transparent and concluding stages whereby a lease is signed competitive environment and applied consis- with the terminal operator through which the tently across the transport system. cargo will pass. The White Paper proposes that, in order to Maritime services include the improvement ensure that South African ports continue to of efficiency in shipping services, the dredging contribute to international competitiveness, of navigational waterways, and ensuring a safe the separation of the port authority and port shipping environment by means of vessel- operations components will provide impetus tracing services, pilotage and lighthouse serv- to ongoing efforts to upgrade facilities and ices. equipment. The ports provide: By far the largest, best-equipped and most •pilotage, tug and berthing services efficient network of ports on the African •bulkhandling installations to handle dry

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and liquid bulk, complemented by storage ly operated terminals are the Richards Bay facilities Coal Terminal; Island View Storage, which han- •container-handling facilities dles bulk liquids and liquefied gases; and •multipurpose terminals for the handling ofFedmis, which exports phosphoric acid. breakbulk and containers The Port of Durban is a full-service general •access to rail and road links cargo and container port. It is the busiest port •ship-repair facilities in southern Africa and is also the most conve- •feeder services. niently situated port for the industrialised Lighthouse services operate 45 lighthouses Durban/Pinetown and Gauteng areas and along the South African coastline. overborder traffic. The NPA has vessel-traffic systems in all As South Africa’s premier cargo and con- ports, which ensure improved safety of naviga- tainer port, the Port of Durban handles over tion within the port and port limits, and 55 Mt of cargo per year. Durban has abundant enhance the service provided to the port user. shipping opportunities, both in terms of Marine services operate 24 large tugs, frequency and destinations served. eight work boats, four pilot boats and 14 It is especially effective as a hub port for launches in the seven commercial ports of cargo to and from the Far East, Europe and the South Africa. Twenty-four-hour services are Americas, serving South Africa as well as west provided in the Ports of Durban and Richards and east African countries. The Port is the Bay. premier port for a wide range of commodities, The Port of Richards Bay, although a young including coal, mineral ores, granite, chemi- port by international standards, and initially cals, petrochemicals, steel, forest products, built for bulk exports, has rapidly developed citrus products, sugar and grain. and diversified into other cargo-handling The Port handles more than 1,2 million forms. The Port is presently South Africa’s containers per annum, with an increase of 6% leading port in terms of dry bulk volumes, to 7% each year. and is capable of handling a diverse group of On 31 July 2003, the Durban Container commodities from steel to forest products. Terminal (DCT) handled 2 555 container With increased traffic to and from the Far vehicles through its gates – the highest East and Australia, an upgrade was essential. number handled in a 24-hour period in the More than R500 million was allocated to history of the DCT. reduce vessel turnaround time, improve The Port of East London is situated at the quality control, upgrade terminal-handling mouth of the Buffalo River on the east coast of equipment, and increase storage capacity. The South Africa, and is the only commercial river Port handles in excess of 80 Mt per year, rep- port on the South African coastline. resenting 55% of South Africa’s seaborne With a well-developed infrastructure, the cargo trade. Port has become one of the major motor vehi- It also offers easy access to South Africa’s cle export and import terminals in South national and rail network with substantial Africa. growth capacity in the rail network link. The Port of Port Elizabeth, with its proxi- For industrial investors, there is an mity to heavily industrialised and intensively abundance of prime industrial land, both farmed areas, has facilities for the handling of immediately adjacent to the Port and further all commodities – bulk, general and container inland. The Port hosts five cargo-handling cargo. terminals, of which three are privately operat- Being at the centre of the country’s motor- ed and two are operated by SAPO. The private- vehicle-manufacturing industry, the Port

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imports large volumes of containerised Port is unique in that it has a purpose-built components and raw material for this industry. railroad serving a bulk-handling facility, The bulk of exports comprises agricultural which is connected to a dedicated jetty for the products. Apart from agricultural produce, shipment of iron ore. manganese ore, motor-vehicle-industry-related Saldanha also serves as a major crude-oil products and steel are exported. importation and transhipment port. The Port of Mossel Bay, primarily serving the About R600 million is being spent on fishing and oil industries, also offers limited upgrading and expanding Saldanha Bay’s steel commercial cargo activity. and iron ore handling facilities. This includes This Port is the only South African port acquiring new equipment and increasing that operates two offshore mooring points workspace efficiency. A number of projects within port limits. Both mooring points are have been initiated to help address environ- utilised for the transport of refined petroleum mental and ecoresponsibility issues. products. The NPA is building the modern deepwater Pipelines port while the Coega Development Corporation is developing the entire land-side infrastructure Petronet owns, maintains and operates a net- for the IDZ. work of 3 000 km of high-pressure petroleum The area is already well-serviced by existing and gas pipelines. During 2001/02, Petronet transport networks and a skilled labour force. transported 13,8 billion litres of fuel from The Port of Cape Town is a full-service coastal and inland refineries to the main general-cargo port. It is renowned for its business centres in Gauteng and surrounding deciduous fruit and frozen-products exports. areas, and some 334 million m3 of gas The fishing industry based at the Port of Cape from Secunda to KwaZulu-Natal. Petronet’s Town is of major proportion. customers are the major oil companies in The Port of Cape Town is strategically South Africa. positioned and ideally situated to serve as a hub for cargoes between Europe, the Maritime affairs Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania. The Port provides a complex network of services to its Maritime administration, clients and a favourable environment for all legislation and shipping stakeholders, so as to maximise the benefit to South Africa’s maritime administration and the local and national economy. legislation is the responsibility of the Integrated intermodal cargo systems, ship Department of Transport, and is controlled on repair, bunkering facilities and the reefer trade its behalf by SAMSA in terms of the SAMSA are all examples of these services. Act, 1998 (Act 5 of 1998). Saldanha Port is a deep-water port and is The broad aim of SAMSA is to maintain the the largest natural port in southern Africa. The safety of life and property at sea within South Africa’s area of maritime jurisdiction and to ensure the prevention of sea pollution by oil and other substances emanating from ships. The Port of East London’s car terminal, which The Department of Environmental Affairs opened in 2000, reported a 29% increase in and Tourism is responsible for the combating vehicle imports and exports moving through it in of pollution, and has specific means at its 2002. It moves 44 000 vehicles a year and this disposal, such as the coast watch number was expected to rise to 55 000 units in Kuswag 2003/04. vessels, with which to perform this function.

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SAMSA is responsible for the introduction operations, the fishing industry and the South and maintenance of international standards African Navy. set by the International Maritime Organisation The South African Merchant Navy Academy, (IMO) in London, with respect to: General Botha, established at Granger Bay, is •ship construction integrated with the Cape Peninsula University •maritime training and training curricula of Technology (formerly called Cape Technikon), •watch-keeping with a similar training facility at the Durban •certification of seafarers Institute of Technology (formerly called Natal •manning and operation of local and foreignTechnikon). Deck and engineering students and ships officers complete their academic training at •maritime search-and-rescue the Cape Peninsula University of Technology •marine communication and radio navigation and the Durban Institute of Technology, while aids lower classes of certificates are offered at the •pollution prevention. Training Centre for Seamen, situated in the SAMSA has an operations unit, a policy unit Duncan Dock area in Cape Town. and a corporate support division to handle all This training institution also caters for deck, financial, human resource and information engine-room and catering department ratings. technology issues. SAMSA is responsible for setting all stan- Other functions include the registration of dards of training certification and watch- ships, the establishment of a coastal patrol keeping on behalf of the Department of service, and the management of marine Transport, while the Maritime Education and casualties and wrecks. Training Board is responsible for the accredita- SAMSA is steadily improving its capacity to tion of all maritime courses. monitor safety standards on foreign vessels. Other maritime training organisations offer Over the past year, 700 ships calling at South a wide range of courses that have been devel- Africa’s seven major ports were inspected. oped within the South African maritime indus- Vessels not in compliance with international try. These are situated mainly in the Ports of safety standards were detained until the Cape Town and Durban and, to a lesser deficiencies were corrected. degree, in Port Elizabeth. The South African Marine Corporation (Safmarine), Unicorn Lines and Griffin Shipping Search-and-rescue services are South Africa’s predominant shipping The Department of Transport is responsible for lines. Their fleets of container, oil tanker, the provision of a search-and-rescue function general cargo and bulk cargo vessels operate in South Africa. not only between South African ports, but The search-and-rescue programme has also as cross-traders to other parts of the been in existence since 1948. world. The South African Search-and-Rescue Organisation (SASAR) has been established to Training provide South Africa with a world-class search- On 9 September 2003, President Thabo Mbeki and-rescue capability. officially opened the South African Maritime SASAR is a voluntary organisation function- Training Academy (SAMTRA) at Simonstown in ing under the auspices of the Department the Western Cape. of Transport. SAMTRA is expected to provide advanced Its main function is to search for, assist and, training to the broader maritime sector, if necessary, rescue survivors of aircraft including the merchant navy, harbour-craft accidents or forced landings, vessels in

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distress, and accidents at sea. It is also charged •promoting safety in the maritime industry with co-ordinating the resources made avail- •promoting SASAR through education and able to the Department by various government training, raising public awareness, raising departments, voluntary organisations, and pri- funds for SASAR’s member organisations, vate aircraft and shipping companies for and being on par with international search-and-rescue purposes. The executive standards committee of SASAR, in conjunction with the •improving the search-and-rescue informa- relevant officials of the Department, is respon- tion systems by computerising the SASAR sible for formulating policy and procedures. assets manual The Department of Transport, the SANDF, •developing and reviewing search-and-rescue Telkom, Portnet, SAMSA, CAA, ATNS, SAPS, the policies in order to comply with ICAO and Independent Communications Authority of the IMO South Africa, SAA and the Department •revising the current institutional search-and- of Provincial and Local Government are rescue framework. members of SASAR and contribute their The Department of Transport is charged services and/or facilities. with the negotiation and conclusion of Voluntary organisations such as the 4x4 bilateral search-and-rescue agreements with Rescue Club, Mountain Club of South Africa, countries bordering on the vast area of Hamnet and the National Sea Rescue Institute responsibility, which is laid down by both are also members of SASAR. the ICAO and the IMO, and is approximately The South African Maritime and Aeronautical 28,5 million km2. Search-and-Rescue Act, 2002 (Act 44 of 2002), South Africa has contributed significantly is being implemented. to search-and-rescue in the southern oceans The Department was engaged in the follow- with the establishment of the Cospas- ing in 2003/04: Sarsat System. It comprises three segments, •inculcating a safety culture in the fishingnamely: industry •radio beacons, carried by ships and aircraft •developing appropriate legislation to inform •a space segment and guide the port-sector reform process, •a ground segment. which is near completion Satellite services are provided free of charge in •developing a framework for better workingterms of the International Cospas-Sarsat conditions in the maritime industry in Agreement, but individual countries must conjunction with the Department of Labour provide and pay for the ground segment that •developing a maritime multilateral strategy comprises: •setting up a Maritime Resource Centre •Local User Terminals (LUTs) that process •creating awareness of the importance of relayed distress signals to provide a beacon maritime transport in the economy location and then transmit alert messages •undertaking a Marine-Pollution Prevention to the Mission Control Centre (MCC) Programme to prevent incidents of oil and •the MCC, which then validates and exchanges chemical spills at sea alert data and technical information and •evaluating the levels of investment in redistributes it to search-and-rescue authori- maritime infrastructure necessary for the ties. reconstruction and development of African South Africa was accepted as a member of the economies International Cospas-Sarsat Programme as •conducting a maritime legislation-review Ground Segment Provider with effect from process 1 November 2000.

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This enables its LUT/MCC to be integrated Maritime safety into the global Cospas-Sarsat System. The South Africa has been identified as a focal following countries will be served by the point for a regional search-and-rescue centre. LUT/MCC: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, the During 2003/04, the Department set aside Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lesotho, R3,5 million for the establishment of a dedi- Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, cated Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre. Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The process is at an advanced stage.

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Acknowledgements

Air Traffic and Navigation Services Airports Company South Africa Civil Aviation Authority Department of Transport Estimates of National Expenditure 2003, published by the National Treasury National Ports Authority of South Africa South African Rail Commuter Corporation Spoornet Ltd Transnet Ltd South African National Roads Agency Ltd Road Accident Fund www.gov.za Suggested reading

Burkett, D. Jetlag: South African Airways in the Andrews Era. Sandton: Penguin, 2001. Byrom, J. Fields of Air:Triumphs,Tragedies and Mysteries of Civil Aviation in Southern Africa. Rivonia, Sandton: Ashanti, 1993. Development Bank of Southern Africa. Infrastructure: A Foundation for Development. Development Report 1998. Midrand: Development Bank of Southern Africa, 1998. Du Toit,A. South Africa’s Fighting Ships, Past and Present. Rivonia, Sandton: Ashanti, 1992. Harris, C.J. and Ingpen, B.D. Mailships of the Union-Castle Line. Cape Town: Fernwood, 1994. Infrastructure Mandates for Change: 1994 – 1999. Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), 2000. Ingpen, B.D. South African Merchant Ships: An Illustrated Recent History of Coasters, Colliers, Containerships,Tugs and Other Vessels. Cape Town: Balkema, 1979. Khosa, M. ed. Empowerment Through Service Delivery. Pretoria: HSRC, 2000. Moore, D. Sunset of Steam: A Tribute in Colour to the Golden Years of Steam Locomotives in South Africa. Johannesburg: Chris van Rensburg, 1990. Nöthling, C.J. and Becker, D. Pride of the Nation: A Short History of the South African Air Force. Pretoria: South African Air Force, 1995. Robbins, D. Blue Train. Johannesburg: Penguin, 1993. Schnettler, F. A Century of Cars. Cape Town:Tafelberg, 1997.

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