The KwaMhlanga community expressed its frustration about the lack of progress with the Moloto Rail Corridor project while it was receiving feedback from the Portfolio Committee on Transport. The committee is on a week-long oversight visit to Mpumalanga, North West and KwaZulu-Natal provinces.
The leader of the delegation, Mr Lawrence MacDonald, said the committee was following up on a commitment it made last year, to report after it had been briefed by the departments involved in the project.
The committee is undertaking a weeklong oversight visit to Mpumalanga, North West, and KZN to understand the challenges associated with road infrastructure.
The community heard that the National Treasury has indicated that the rail part of the project will be discontinued and that the focus will be on widening the road, part of which has been handed over to Sanral.
Mr MacDonald promised that the committee will not give up on the matter, as it posed a danger to the people of Mpumalanga.
Among the challenges raised by the community were poor service received from Putco Bus, the removal of the Moloto Corridor from a list of high priority presidential projects, access to national government and the lack of response to a memorandum that was handed to the Presidency.
One community member said that the project had previously been allocated budget and was mentioned during a State of the Nation Address. A feasibility study was done and everything approved, but now they hear the project has been abandoned. Another community member was saddened that accidents in the area had become a part of life. The community were also disappointed with the lack of details provided in the report-back session.
Sibongile Maputi
19 April 2022
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