The Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) has prohibited Tshwane’s municipality from using a section of its railway line until defects have been attended to.

The authority issued a directive on Thursday (26 November) after an inspection of a section of railway line to the Epol siding in Pretoria West.

The regulator said: “Upon inspection it was found that the tracks were covered with soil; overgrown grass and trees were observed on the lines; point tumblers were missing; rotten wooden sleepers were observed on turn out sets and level crossing signage was missing.”

The directive was issued to the municipality “for operating under conditions which are a threat or might be a threat to safe railway operations”.

“The Directive is effective immediately and will only be revoked when the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality has satisfactorily demonstrated to the RSR that the immediate threats no longer exist.

“As a transport agency of the Department of Transport‚ responsible for railway safety‚ the RSR is determined to educate South Africans on rail safety and to ensure that the transportation of passengers and goods are conducted legally‚ efficiently and safely.”