Passengers on the luxurious Blue Train were taken to Cape Town by bus on Wednesday night after the locomotive crashed into wagons at Matjiesfontein station.

Transnet rail spokesman Mike Asefovitz told Die Burger newspaper that the train had an unscheduled stop at Matjiesfontein due to problems with the overhead cables at Hex River.

By Monday morning the overhead cables, apparently stolen, had not been replaced and the group of passengers at Cape Town station had to take a bus to Matjiesfontein to catch the train.

Meanwhile, a locomotive was sent to pull the train to Pretoria.

The driver was hooking the locomotive when he allegedly moved too fast and collided with the first car. Nobody was injured in the incident, but the train was damaged.

A group of frustrated passengers sat at the Lord Milner Hotel and ordered "something cold".

Two buses transported the passengers back to Cape Town.