IN PICTURES | Taking chances on Cape Town’s dilapidated and depleted trains

Metrorail commuters face long waits, unexpected delays, faulty trains and dangerously crowded carriages every day.

The embattled railway agency’s service is not showing any signs of improvement. On January​ ​​​​25 yet another train was set alight, this time at Century City railway station, leaving only 30 operational out of the 88 required in the province (different sources give slightly different numbers).

The shortage of train sets puts strain on the service during peak hours, making for hazardous travelling.

This has forced some commuters to use more expensive transport to get to work, such as taxis or the MyCiTi bus.

For the passengers who do use the train, it is an uncomfortable experience. Many of the trains have been extensively vandalised. Metroplus (first-class) carriages have whole seats ripped out, leaving nails sticking out.

The lighting systems are often stolen, leaving exposed wires hanging from the ceiling, and frequently doors are permanently jammed open.

On January 31 a train travelling on the Southern Line from Cape Town to Simon’s Town broke down at 3pm, 200m before Rondebosch station. It did not move for an hour.

After it became clear that the train was not going to move, passengers on the broken down train started climbing off the train on to the tracks. Once they got off the train, they saw that a second train was coming in the same direction from Cape Town on another track.

More than 100 passengers then started running up the track towards the station in front of the oncoming train, attempting to reach the station before the train arrived.

The train was forced to stop and wait for all the passengers to get off the broken down train and walk down the tracks to Rondebosch station.

There were many young and elderly commuters who had to jump off the train, a drop of about 1.5m.

The station was chaotic and full. Eventually the second train started moving, arriving at Rondebosch at 4:30pm. It was dangerously crowded, and many people chose to wait for the next train, not wanting to risk their safety.

This is just one example of the kind of challenges that Metrorail commuters face  daily.

This article was first published on GroundUp