TWO Metrorail trains collided on Monday morning, 13 February.
The Mabopane Train 1800 and Saulsville Train 0002 were heading to Pretoria when the incident happened around 5am.
Gauteng Metrorail spokeswoman Lillian Mofokeng said no injuries of staff members or commuters were reported.
She said Metrorail’s technical teams were on the ground assessing the crash site to determine the cause of the accident.
She explained that trains from Mabopane were now turning at Hercules Station as no trains are allowed to run between Hercules and the Pretoria Station.
On the other hand, Saulsville trains have been temporarily suspended.
She said commuters going to Pretoria from Mabopane and Dewildt are advised to seek alternative transportation until the accident scene is cleared.
“Technical teams were hard at work to assess the damages and currently the estimated value of the rolling stock damage is at R20 million. We will assess the infrastructure once the site has been cleared. We are working around the clock to ensure we clear the scene to allow for movement,” she said.
Mofokeng said they are hoping to announce the possible resumption of services soon.
“This incident is a big concern for us,” she said.
She said they also want to ensure that the employees are psychological okay before they can be able to take up their next shift.
Mofokeng added that they have never had a train derailment or collision of this nature in a while.
She said at the moment, they don’t know the cause of the accident but the speculation is that it might have been caused by human error.
She said in a separate incident, they have temporarily suspended the Pienaarspoort train service due to a faulty train set in Pretoria Station.
“We are unable to move the train sets outside or even get the other sets into section because of the incident,” she said.
Commuters, who were coming to board trains at affected routes, were left disappointed.
Anna Moloto (29) said she wanted to take a train to Saulsville but there were no trains.
“We hope that the problem will be solved soon so that the trains can start operating again,” she said.
Another commuter, Betty Ndlovu (43), said: “I came to board a train to Mamelodi but I was told by officials that there are no trains.”
She said this was difficult for her because she had already bought a train ticket and she didn’t have money to go back home.
Abram Xulu (56) said: “These trains are our last hope because we don’t have money. I hope the accident will be cleared soon and trains will start running again.”
