Latest Media Releases

2006

Launch of Premier Classe full train set: speech by Ms. Maria Ramos

Trains have a long and proud history in South Africa. The history of our railways is studded with romance and some of the greatest and most arresting figures in our history have been railwaymen. They blazed their trails across inhospitable topography and helped create a new, vibrant mode of transport. Their steam-driven spirit is still there, behind everything our railway undertakes in latter day economic endeavour.

Shosholoza Meyl our long distance commuter business is here to maintain and enhance that way of life. We are here to invent new ways of train travel and reinvigorate the romance associated with the steam engine, with all its latter day enhancements and luxuries for our communities to enjoy.

It is thus with a sense of great pride that we celebrate the official launch of the Premier Classe Complete Train Set. This is Shosholoza Meyl's flagship and luxury service between Johannesburg and Cape Town.

This product was initially introduced six years ago as a pilot with four coaches coupled to the TransKaroo passenger train traveling between Johannesburg and Cape Town. Growth in demand for this particular train service has necessitated the building of a complete train set to meet customer needs. Whereas the initial set accommodated 28 passengers, the new train set accommodates 84 passengers. The train set consists of 6 deluxe accommodation coaches, an elegant dining car, a luxurious lounge car and a car truck, which allows guests travelling on the Premier Classe to transport their motor vehicles with them while they are enjoying a most memorable train journey.

The Premier Classe will provide an affordable yet luxurious service to the South African Market especially middle to high-income earners and this we believe will encourage and positively stimulate local tourism. It will also, consequently, draw people back onto trains and thus reduce the burden on roads.

Shosholoza Meyl, a business unit of Spoornet, is part of the business units targeted to be transferred from Transnet to the Department of Transport in the near future.

Shosholoza Meyl provides affordable long distance rail passenger service in the country and this is Spoornet and Transnet's essential contribution to South Africa's economy, for which it receives no subsidy from government. It is therefore fitting and appropriate that our government is looking into ring-fencing all the commuter rail services into one single entity that will provide a service in public interest. Our current passenger rail infrastructure, serves millions of our citizens. The value of this service in social and economic development terms is, without any doubt, immense.

One of the strategic priorities of Spoornet, and Shosholoza Meyl in particular, is to make rail transportation, because of its affordability, safety and reliability, the most preferred mode of transport.

In addition to the long distance travel services, Shosholoza Meyl also has a Charter Train service that caters for passengers who require customized tourism packages travelling within our country and to neighbouring countries. The neighbouring countries that we serve at the moment are Botswana, Swaziland, Lesotho, Namibia, Moçambique and Zimbabwe. After winning the bid to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup, we envisage that tourists who will travel to South Africa for this event will make more use of these Charter trains than any other mode of transport.

This is not an isolated initiative. From a freight railway perspective, Transnet and Government are hard at work to put our rail infrastructure and suprastructure (rolling stock) on a sound footing as a springboard for the growth of our economy. A focused program that forms part of our integrated logistics strategy is being implemented aimed at the refurbishment and modernization of our locomotive fleet, wagons as well as the railway network. This will go a long way towards addressing the needs and circumstances of general freight and our key industrial customers.

We are excited about the launch of this new product. We invite you and the larger stakeholder base to enjoy it for many years to come; we want to build lasting partnerships with our communities, relevant stakeholders, and civil society at large. To all of you who have taken the time to join us at this ground breaking and pioneering event, The Premier Classe launch, vive la différence!

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