Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe reaches end of the line

[John Ashworth]

Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, last steam train in Africa [sic], reaches end of the line

From The Times
June 27, 2009


The last scheduled steam train in Africa ended its final journey yesterday after flooding and landslides made it too expensive to run.

The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, which uses British-made locomotives and attracts thousands of British steam fans, takes passengers across some of South Africa’s most stunning scenery, in the Garden Route in the Western Cape.However, the rising cost of maintenance along its 42-mile route from George to Mossel Bay has become too expensive for its state-run owner, Transnet. It will carry out maintenance on the line next week but unless a new financial partner comes on board no regular steam trains will run again on the line.

The closure will bring an end to a proud tradition of regular steam passenger trains on the continent where Cecil Rhodes once had grandiose plans to construct a Cape to Cairo railway at the height of Empire.

Chris Janisch, at the Heritage Rail Association of South Africa, said: “It’s tragic for steam fans and tragic for tourism. The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe attracts thousands of tourists who spend a lot of money.

“It’s not just the railway — it’s the guest houses, restaurants and other companies which rely on tourist money. I’ve been in touch with some British enthusiasts and they said they’d be really sorry to see it close.”

The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe has operated to a daily timetable in summer and a shortened one in winter, and has been used by some people in the area as a regular train service.

Its two-hour route hugs the Indian Ocean coastline, criss-crossing lagoons and rivers and climbing hillsides overlooking rolling countryside. It was opened in 1907 and an extension to Knysna — an area which boasts particularly breathtaking scenery — was added 21 years later. It carries about 115,000 passengers a year, two thirds of them tourists. The service is named after the nearby Outeniqua mountains.

It has an average speed of 30mph but has to revert to diesel locomotives in summer, when there is a risk that hot ashes from the steam trains’ boilers may cause fires on the veld. Four Class 19D steam trains are used to pull five coaches, all of which were built in Glasgow and assembled in South Africa in the early part of the 20th century.

Alan Winde, from the provincial government, has been trying to secure private funding to keep the train running and says that he is optimistic — but admits there is no money from public budgets. “The train is an icon and you need to have icons in a tourist market. My greatest concern is that the longer we leave it, the harder it will get it up and running again,” he said.

The train has not made the trip from George to Knysna since 2006, when serious flooding caused widespread mudslides and made the track impassable without an estimated £5 million of work.

Ian Pretorius, a steam enthusiast who runs Atlantic Rail in Cape Town, said: “There is the skill in South Africa but we need the funding. Transnet will not be running trains anymore so we need to find someone who does.”

[Steve Appleton]

Transnet have stopped short of saying that the OCT has closed for good, saying instead that the train is stopped for 6 to 8 weeks for maintenance. This press statement clarifies (or does it?):

"On the 26 June 2009, the Transnet Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe Steam Train service will be halted for a period of 6-8 weeks. This is so that the compulsory maintenance required by the Rail Safety Regulator can be carried out. Such maintenance has been scheduled to fall in the winter season when the demand for the service is at its lowest.
Transnet will continue to engage the Provincial Government of the Western Cape and other role players to consider proposals regarding alternative, commercial operators for the Choo-Tjoe Train in the future."
Please attribute this statement to:
Mr. John Dludlu
Spokesman
Transnet Ltd

[Dylan Knott]

I think its the end of the line. Unless an Operator can be located, briefed and instructed to continue the operation in 8 week time...

[Dylan Knott]

http://www.ewn.co.za/articleprog.aspx?id=16561

KFM Nuus

[Stefan Andrzejewski]

Does Transnet know their left from their right

[Dylan Knott]

Nee! But for how much longer will we have to wait?

[Luca Lategan]

only remaining steam train in the world

Where are these people coming from? And what type of maintanence needs to be carried out in any case?

[Kevin Wilson-Smith]

Line/bridge maintenance? Who knows.

But at the end of the day maintenance does have to be carried anywhere.

Rather wait the few weeks and see what occurs. Bottom line however is if it is running with the losses given it is likely not to reopen, or to close again in the future. Everything revolves around money and if you do not have it................

[Luca Lategan]

If it's the line that's under maintanence it means that there can now be NO trains to PE via Mosselbay, right, so the Premiere Classe and freight can also not run. This can't be right.

[Kevin Wilson-Smith]

Coaches? But really this is all hypothesis - rather lets wait and see. Not much anyone can really do at the moment, unless there is a closet millionaire around feeling generous!

The problem really is i suspect, as always, money! And unfortunately, no matter how passionate people get, very few want to dig into their pockets when things get tough. Or ammend their wills? Or open up a debit order! But thats also reality - and so it goes.

[Luca Lategan]

True, but s**t, when I see what kind of money is thrown around here where I live that can save almost all locos in South Africa on stuff that is so unimportant there's tears in my navy-blue eyes.

That first million...

[Luca Lategan]

Oe OE OE, I heard the guy from the Lottery board speak on 567 yesterday, and he said that there is too little organisations applying for Lottery money!

Has the Heritage organisations tried something like this?

[Kevin Wilson-Smith]

To my knowledge no. CJ?

But the lottery approach, if it worked, would be perfect for getting a trust fund together for preservation as per the preservation route - as per our "bitumen" discussion in the other thread. Preserve the stuff until it can one day be worked on etc., not just park it on a lot and leave it for another day!

[Luca Lategan]

But I don't think you can get money for 'a general project'. It has to be a definitive project, eg. the long term preservation of so many locos at this lococation with this material so that it will be easily resorable in so many years.

[Kevin Wilson-Smith]

Thats a given. Befoe anything is done anyway a national up to date inventory - so the correct decisions can be made - is needed. This is currently underway or due to start shortly.