GAUTRAIN REAFFIRMS ITS COMMITMENT TO FURTHER ENHANCE ITS SYSTEM TO ENSURE UNIVERSAL ACCESSIBILITY
26 April 2024
Freedom of mobility is a fundamental right, and on the eve of Freedom Day, the Gautrain reaffirms its commitment to further enhance its system to ensure universal accessibility.
Speaking at the Transport Summit on Universal Accessibility in Ekurhuleni, President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted that “the Gautrain has had level boarding on its trains since its inception,” making embarking and disembarking quick and easy for people with disabilities. The two-day conference which runs until today (26 April 2024), is tackling barriers that persons with disabilities face in accessing transportation services.
According to the Gautrain Management Agency CEO, Tshepo Kgobe, the Gautrain system was designed with accessibility at its heart. “There are wide entrance gates for people with mobility devices such as wheelchairs, lifts for easy access to the various platforms, and signage to indicate accessible seating on the train cars. Furthermore, every second bus has a wheelchair ramp and some midibuses are equipped with electronic wheelchair lifts. Hearing and sight-impaired passengers are provided for using colour contrasts, clear signage, high-quality lighting, and non-reflective surfaces. Service announcements are provided in audio as well as on visual information boards. Where applicable, tactile and audible guidance and warning systems are also in place,” says Kgobe.
To further enhance accessibility, the Gautrain will introduce a product specifically catering for people with disabilities. “We acknowledge that much more can be done, and will continue to engage organisations representing people with disabilities and listen to their suggestions on how we can make the Gautrain system more accessible,” said Kgobe. He added that the South African Guide-Dogs Association conducts mobility and orientation training on the Gautrain system for sight-impaired students using canes.
“We will continue to heed concerns or suggestions regarding issues of universal accessibility for people with disabilities. The Gautrain is an efficient, comfortable, and safe public transport service for all,” Kgobe concluded.
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Contact:
Albi Modise
Gautrain Management Agency, Senior Executive Manager: Communication and Marketing
albim@gautrain.co.za
For more information, follow Gautrain on:
•Twitter - @TheGautrain
•Facebook –
www.facebook.com/gautrain
•Instagram - @TheGautrain
•Website –
www.gautrain.co.za
•Call Centre – 0800 42887246
•SMS alert line – 32693
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FREE GAUTRAIN SERVICE FOR BAFANA BAFANA'S ARRIVAL AT OR TAMBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
13 FEBRUARY 2024
Gautrain will offer a free train service to Bafana Bafana supporters travelling to and from OR Tambo International Airport on Wednesday, 14 February 2024, starting with the first train departing each station to the airport until 09:30am only. The free train service is available from all Gautrain stations for persons wearing Bafana Bafana gear or colours or carrying a South African flag/merchandise without luggage.
“As Gautrain, we join the nation in celebrating Bafana Bafana for flying the South African flag high at the Africa Cup of Nations tournament. We encourage South Africans to get onboard the Gautrain in numbers, let’s give our national team a warm welcome in true South African style,” says Gautrain Management Agency CEO, Tshepo Kgobe.
The following terms and conditions apply:
• The free train service is available from all Gautrain stations.
• Only persons wearing Bafana Bafana gear or colours or carrying a South African flag/merchandise without luggage, can use the free train service.
• The first trains departing from the stations are as follows:
o Park Station – 05:29am
o Rosebank – 05:33am
o Sandton – 05:21am
o Marlboro – 05:25am
o Rhodesfield – 05:33am
o Midrand – 05:43am
o Centurion – 05:39am
o Pretoria – 05:32am
o Hatfield – 05:24am
• The free train service to the airport is only available until 07:00am.
• When returning from the airport, the free service is only between 06:30am and 09:30am.
• Free travel is limited to the train service and does not include Gautrain buses.
• Standard Gautrain rules will apply, including no eating or drinking on the train.
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________________________________________________________________________
Contact:
Albi Modise
Gautrain Management Agency, Senior Executive Manager: Communication and Marketing
albim@gautrain.co.za
For more information, follow Gautrain on:
•Twitter - @TheGautrain
•Facebook –
www.facebook.com/gautrain
•Instagram - @TheGautrain
•Website –
www.gautrain.co.za
•Call Centre – 0800 42887246
•SMS alert line – 32693
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TSHEPO KGOBE TAKES THE HELM AT GAUTRAIN MANAGEMENT AGENCY AS THE NEW CEO
01 FEBRUARY 2024
Gautrain Management Agency’s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Tshepo Kgobe, has assumed his role with effect from today, 1 February 2024.
The Gauteng MEC for Transport and Logistics, Kedibone Diale-Tlabela, announced the appointment of Kgobe as the next CEO in September 2023. Kgobe served as Chief Operating Officer at the Gautrain Management Agency (GMA) for the last four years. He succeeds William Dachs who stepped down at the end of his tenure on 31 January 2024.
Kgobe takes on the role of CEO at a time when the Agency has gone to market to invite bids for the next concessionaire to operate the Gautrain system, with the current contract with Bombela Concession Company coming to an end in 2026. The new delivery partner will operate, maintain, modernise, innovate, and upgrade the current Gautrain system so that it continues to provide a safe and efficient public transport service. Furthermore, the extension project to add 150-kilometre of rail network to the existing 80-kilometre Gautrain system is also taking shape. The route determination of Phase 1 of the proposed extensions from Marlboro Station to Little Falls Station has been finalised.
“The Gautrain Management Agency is a well-run entity that has over the past eleven years received clean audits and I have all the faith and trust that with Kgobe at the helm, the Agency will continue to scale higher levels of success. We wish him well in his new role and he has our full support in using the Gautrain as a vehicle for stimulating economic growth and job creation, promoting investment and new development,” said Diale-Tlabela.
Kgobe is an engineer with diverse technical expertise in infrastructure, energy, mining and the railway environment. He has extensive experience managing complex projects and operations. At the start of the Gautrain project, he was responsible for the engineering and project management of the trackwork subsystem.
“We want to maintain the high levels of operational efficiency and clean governance that have seen the Gautrain Management Agency record 11 consecutive clean audit outcomes. We also want to move the operations of the Gautrain Management Agency to be self-funding and self-sustaining by reducing the reliance on the fiscus,” said Kgobe.
According to Kgobe, the Agency’s multiple pronged strategy will enable it to become financially sustainable. “Firstly, we will look at property development in and around our stations, where we already have the rights to the land and want to partner with developers in developing that land. Gautrain Precincts will therefore become a hub for business, retail and social activities, supported by an integrated, accessible and affordable public transport system. Secondly, we are working on greening our operations and taking most of the station off the grid through solar power solutions and ensuring that most of our buses are powered by hydrogen. Furthermore, as we refurbish the trains post 2026, we will explore the possibility of developing them into hydrogen trains,” Kgobe explained.
“The Gautrain will become an even more integral part of people's daily lives and the mobility of choice in the province, not only for work, business and school, but also for large-scale social, sport and lifestyle events, and places of fun and entertainment. This is in line with the Agency’s purpose to transform spaces, people and the economy through mobility, Kgobe concluded.
The MEC also welcomed the new Gautrain Management Agency Board, whose term came into effect from 1 January 2024, chaired by Prof. Mfanelo Patrick Ntsobi.
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To watch the new CEO’s full message on Gautrain’s future plans, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jopXXHnN0Kg
________________________________________________________________________
Contact:
Albi Modise
Gautrain Management Agency, Senior Executive Manager: Communication and Marketing
albim@gautrain.co.za
For more information, follow Gautrain on:
•Twitter - @TheGautrain
•Facebook –
www.facebook.com/gautrain
•Instagram - @TheGautrain
•Website –
www.gautrain.co.za
•Call Centre – 0800 42887246
•SMS alert line – 32693
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