Cape Town Central Line Railway Restoration Faces Challenges Over Relocation of 4 000 Households

Plans to restore Cape Town's Central Line railway service, a crucial transit point for thousands of commuters, are being confronted with significant challenges, the paramount of which is the relocation of nearly 4 000 households currently occupying the railway land.

During a Wednesday meeting of the Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA), it surfaced that these households still occupy the railway land, particularly PRASA-owned land beyond Nyanga, in Philippi. During the 2020 Covid lockdown, people erected shacks on the rail reserve and rail line, including areas in Langa, Nyanga, and Philippi. The situation was compounded by discontinued security contracts by PRASA due to incidents of vandalism and theft.

In a bid to resolve this, more than 1 250 households occupying the line at Langa have been temporarily relocated, enabling partial reinstatement of the rail line. However, finding permanent residence for these households poses a major challenge.

The cost of permanent relocation for these households is projected to amount to R117 million. Aside from this, a further 3 941 households in Philippi and Khayelitsha currently occupy PRASA land, 891 of which are being temporarily relocated to land beside the Stock Road train station in Philippi.

Steps toward land rezoning have already initiated for the permit of a relocation site for Langa households. It is expected to be completed by March next year, marking the start of the next phase, which will be funded by the Informal Settlements Upgrading Grant in the 2024/25 financial year.

However, acquiring land for households'in Philippi and Khayelitsha remains a stiff challenge, described as the "main risk" to the so-called Operation Bhekela by HDA's Ndumiso Mkhwanazi. Communities have voiced their desire for concrete assurances about where they will ultimately be moved.

Addressing this, the steering committee has resolved that PRASA would take on the expenses related to land acquisition, which includes reimbursing the HDA for R12.7 million spent, as well as an estimated R50 million for the second phase of land acquisition.

Mkhwanazi disclosed that the assessment of the Stock Road station land's suitability for temporary housing has been completed. Subsequent developments, including fencing off the area and providing access roads, are already in progress, emphasizing community engagement and buy-in throughout the relocation process.