More than 1 500 South Africans had been injured last year in accidents and incidents involving trains, says Metrorail.
|||Durban - More than 1 500 South Africans had been injured last year in accidents and incidents involving trains - mainly because of the reckless and unsafe behaviour of the public - according to the country’s passenger rail agency.
In KwaZulu-Natal, where approximately 160 000 commuters travel by train every day, 52 had died in 2011. Nationally, 314 train-related deaths had been recorded that year by Metrorail.
“Of these… 43 were pedestrians struck while crossing the tracks illegally, eight were suicides, three were electrocuted and three fell while attempting to board a moving train,” said Lawrence Venkile, spokesman for the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa), which operates Metrorail.
Venkile said the number of deaths and injuries was going up every year. Last year, the number of deaths in KZN increased to 54, and to 341 nationally. KZN recorded 195 injuries, while nationally 1 500 were injured.
Venkile blamed many of the injuries and deaths on “reckless and unsafe behaviour of the public in and around the rail environment”.
The normal speed for a passenger train is 90km/h, however because of safety considerations there are areas in the network where speed restrictions require a train to move either at 60km/h or 30km/h. For a train to come to a complete stop, it needs approximately 3km from the time the emergency brake is applied.
Venkile said there were many reasons why people continued to walk on the tracks or cross them at illegal crossings.
“The proliferation of informal settlements along the railway line - more often than not these communities do not have access to amenities and social infrastructure which at times would be located in adjacent communities on the other side of the railway line,” he said.
“There is also the issue of fare evasion where some commuters do not want to pay for train tickets and therefore use illegal entrances and exits to and from the station. They usually jump off the train on the track side at the station and escape through holes in the fences.
“Then there are criminals that enter the rail environment through illegal means with the intention to steal cables or vandalise the infrastructure,” Venkile said, adding that people also enter the rail environment with the intent to end their lives.
“There are numerous safety campaigns that are being conducted by Metrorail in all the regions including KwaZulu-Natal,” Venkile said.
“Metrorail has recently recognised a national body called United Commuters’ Voice as a partner in educating commuters and the public, in instilling safe behaviour in and around the railway environment.”
Particular attention was given to high-risk areas - informal settlements along railway lines, and schools and communities where the utilisation of train services was high, Venkile said.
Commuters were also advised on rail safety at stations during peak periods.
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