Gautrain rocks!

Friday, 06 August 2010 08:28

The mega project has surpassed all expectations, writes Project Management South Africa CEO, Taryn van Olden

One of the criticisms of South Africa’s infrastructure, voiced by locals and foreigners alike, has been our lack of adequate public transportation. Our middle class would battle to function without two cars per family and the prospect of being without a car for a day, such as when it is being serviced, means massive co-ordination of lifts and juggled meetings to accommodate the fact that, for SEVERAL hours, you will be unable to move yourself from where you are to where you may want to be.

As a Gauteng dweller, with many miles to cover in a day, I feel most in control when I have a reliable vehicle and a full tank of petrol. The highways are my oyster and I can go any way, do anything. The extent to which being snared in the traffic jams that prevailed during the road-widening exercises could possibly evoke a sense of freedom and control may be the topic of a thesis in psychology – many big-city residents will know what I mean.

When the Gautrain project was announced, my first reaction was: Wonderful, now other people can use it and I will have more space on the roads to drive my little controlled cocoon just as I always have.

That was before I was able to glimpse the inner workings of this incredible project. The more I interacted with some of the project managers on the various companies – bringing their knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm to the consortium – the more I actually began to picture myself using this train.

I became a champion of the cause, even finding myself in heated arguments with family members who simply could not believe we could pull it off.

Fortunately, I could argue, backed up by logic and facts, having witnessed several presentations by the leaders of the various aspects of the project. I could haul out artist impressions, statistics and credentials, grudgingly reminding them how much foreign participation the project had attracted. (Yes, there are still some who believe we can only get things right with outside help.)

Well, get it right we most certainly did – and in time to open the OR Tambo Airport/Sandton link to our 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup visitors.

A few weeks before the Gautrain ‘went public’, I had the opportunity to walk on the tracks in the sectors that are still being completed. I saw the machinery that prepares the various components of the rails, and listened to the project team as it cited details, specifications, volumes and quality controls involved in accurately laying the tracks for the beautiful train to run on.

I watched as one of the trains repeated its ‘sprints’ to clock up the necessary mileage that dictates its readiness for human transportation.

And then I got up close to it, touched it and saw my eager reflection in its shiny, gold exterior and I simply could not wait to ride it. Neither could many other Gautrain fans.

With the World Cup-induced school holidays upon us, families are flocking to enjoy the city’s latest outing – riding the train from Sandton station to OR Tambo Airport (or the ‘cheaper’ Rhodesfield station) – and back again.

There have been some hitches with understanding how the Gold Card system works, how the buses run, and the train’s speed had to be reined in when icy rails posed a safety risk – but for the most part, the Gautrain experience is everything it was promised to be: a fast, efficient, world-class means of covering a route that for years has frustrated motorists and travellers alike.

It offers unprecedented views of the Johannesburg skyline, and the opportunity to gaze out a window without having to navigate poor driving conditions and frown at endless miles of tar.

For most of us (and I suspect even the cynics who said the Gautrain would be the province’s greatest white elephant are coming around), this is a significant and monumental moment for our country.

Outside its relevance to our responsibilities and success as host nation for the World Cup, we have seen an affordable transport infrastructure come to life which will serve future generations and will finally change the way we commute, making buses and trains as much an option for those who, like me, have been automobile-bound until now, and adding to the options and diversity available to existing public transport users.

If you have not already taken a ride, do it and become part of history. After all, that is what this fabulous year, 2010, is really all about for those of us fortunate to live in this great country.

Taryn van Olden

Chief executive officer

Project Management South Africa

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Gautrain rocks!

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