Railways in

South Africa

Luxury cruise train The Blue Train departing from Cape Town, Table Mountain in he background.

The first recorded railway in South Africa was a quarry line at The Bluff, near Durban, which operated from 1856. Just under 1 mile (1.5km) in length, it was unusual in being constructed with plain wooden rails on which wagons with flanged wheels ran, thus distinguishing it from earlier wooden railways in England which used flanged rails. The gauge was 4ft (1220mm). Wagons were drawn by oxen.

The first public railway opened in 1860 between Durban and The Point. This short railway was built to standard (1435mm) gauge and was subsequently extended as far as the mining areas of Witwatersrand. However, later railway development in South Africa was mainly at a gauge of 3ft 6in (1067mm). This choice of gauge was in part conditioned by a grandiose plan sponsored by the prominent entreprenuer and politician Cecil Rhodes for a transcontinental railway from the Cape of Good Hope all the way to Cairo in Egypt. Although the scheme was never realized, a number of other countries in East Africa adopted the same gauge, a decision which greatly facilitated international traffic.

The present day network covers most of the country, although passenger services are notably absent from the area west of the main line from Cape Town to Kimberley and Vryburg. The majority of lines are 3ft 6in (1067mm) gauge, although around 314km of 2ft (610mm) gauge line remain in operation. The main network has international connections with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Moçambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe. In 2023, work commenced on an additional connection with Eswatini. All the connections carry at least some freight. There are no regular international passenger services, though many of the international connections are used at least occasionally by luxury cruise trains.

For several years, negotiations have been taking place to award operating concessions to private operators on several Transnet lines.

As part of an initiative by the African Union, a new high speed railway is proposed from Pretoria via Gabarone in Botswana to Windhoek in Namibia.

Main Line and Commuter Railways

• Transnet Freight Rail national railway network and freight operator on the network
• Shosholoza Meyl long distance passenger operator
• Metrorail commuter railway networks in the major cities
• Gautrain standard (1435mm) gauge inter-city and commuter railway between Pretoria and Johannesburg, with a link to Johannesburg International Airport.
• StarLine Namibian passenger train operator providing services between Upington and the Namibian border.
• Integrated High Speed Train Network proposed new high speed railway (Website contains no specific details of railway)

Concessionary Operators

Concessions have been agreed in principle for the companies below to take over operation of the lines from Transnet.

• Sbhekuza Rail Mthatha to Amabele, about 283km.

And two others, unidentified at present.

Private Railways

• Ceres Railway Company private freight line from Wolseley (connection with Transnet) via Ceres to Prince Alfred Hamlet, about 26 km. Also operates tourist passenger services, see below.
• Eskom private freight line under construction from Ermelo, Mpumalanga (connection with Transnet) to Majuba Power Station, about 68 km.

Luxury Cruise Trains

• The Blue Train
• Rovos Rail
• Shongololo Express

Tourist Railways

• Atlantic Rail steam hauled passenger trains on the lines of Transnet, from Cape Town to destinations in the Stellenbosch area. Operates typically two Sundays each month. Other services are proposed for the future.
• Ceres Railway Company steam hauled passenger trains between Cape Town and Ceres, over the lines of Transnet and its own freight line. Operates one way or return journeys on a few days each month.
• Reefsteamers steam hauled passenger trains, operating typically 2 days each month, from Johannesburg Park station to Magaliesburg (about 40 km) and occasionally to other destinations.
• Apple Express King’s Beach, Port Elizabeth to Port Elizabeth International Airport, about 3.5km. 2ft (610mm) gauge, steam hauled. Proposed eventual extension to Thornhill, a total distance of about 53km. Possible future local and commuter services.
• Hambaweheli Express Paddock to Plains, about 2.5km. 2ft (610 mm) gauge, diesel hauled (No website located at present)
• Paton’s Country Railway Ixopo to Umzinkulu, about 20km. 2ft (610 mm) gauge, steam or diesel hauled
• Sandstone Estates working farm near Ficksburg with a 2ft (610 mm) gauge railway covering some 26km, using preserved steam and diesel locomotives. Open to the public only for special events, but visits can generally be made at other times by prior arrangement.
• Umgeni Steam Railway Kloof to Inchanga, standard gauge, usually steam hauled. Runs two or three Sundays in each month. Occasional excursions also operate from Pietermaritzburg to Baynesfield and Wartburg.
• Wonder Steam Trains group proposing to operate steam hauled tourist passenger trains on the lines of Transnet from Pretoria to Cullinan, about 45km.
• Friends of the Choo-Tjoe group seeking to reopen all or part of the 67km line from Knysna to George, formerly the route of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, as a tourist line
• Franschhoek Wine Tram diesel tram built to a traditional design, carrying visitors to vineyards in the Franschhoek area.
• Kimberley Trams historic 3ft 6in (1067mm) gauge electric street tramway running between City Hall and the Kimberley Mine Museum (No website located at present)

Industrial Railways

This list is not intended to be exhaustive.

• Kumba Iron Ore operates an extensive 1067mm gauge rail network at its Sishen mine in Northern Cape Province, loading trains for onward haulage by Transnet (Website contains few details relating to railway)