MINISTER of Transport, Barbara Creecy has announced a major push to revitalise South Africa’s struggling rail network, officially launching a series of Requests for Information (RFIs) aimed at attracting significant private sector investment into the passenger rail system. The announcement, made in Pretoria on Sunday, marks “another important milestone in our collective journey to make rail the cornerstone of our national transport and logistics system”, the Minister stated.
The move comes as the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) seeks to build on its recovery path, which saw it successfully commission 35 out of 40 passenger corridors and achieve an audited annual figure of 77 million passenger journeys by the end of May 2025. However, Minister Creecy stressed that continued recovery requires “additional investment that cannot be carried by the fiscus alone”. The RFIs are designed to gather innovative ideas and solutions that will guide future Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for private sector partnership.
New regional rapid rail projects mentioned by the Minister did not include any in the Eastern Cape. The proposed high-speed and regional rail plans focus on linking cities such as Pretoria, Johannesburg, Polokwane, Musina, Mbombela, and Durban. These lines are touted to “stimulate new development in towns along each route”.
Multi-faceted investment opportunities
The comprehensive RFI process covers a wide spectrum of areas, inviting the private sector to participate in key modernisation projects including:
- Smart ticketing for seamless travel: A significant shift towards a single, “tap-and-go” ticket usable across trains, buses, and taxis is planned. The system will be account-based, eliminating paper tickets and improving revenue management transparency.
- Upgrading Prasa’s train depots: Plans are underway to modernise major maintenance depots at Braamfontein and Wolmerton. The Minister noted, “This will mean faster train repairs, better reliability, and new investment in nearby areas – creating jobs and boosting local development”.
- Commercialising Prasa’s fibre optic network: Prasa is rolling out thousands of kilometres of fibre-optic cable for its new signalling system. Private partners are invited to help turn this into a source of income by offering broadband and digital services, simultaneously enhancing safety and real-time communication.
- Introducing regional rapid trains: The most ambitious proposal involves a new generation of high-speed regional trains. Plans include new 160 to 200 km/h regional lines and “testing the water for a new 300-kilometre-per-hour high-speed railway between Johannesburg and Durban”.
- Leasing and repurposing Prasa fleet: Skilled private operators are invited to lease and manage Prasa’s new, world-class blue trains built at the Gibela factory, as well as repurpose older yellow trains under clear performance standards. Simultaneously, the Department is seeking to partner with manufacturers to position South Africa as “Africa’s leading train builder.”
Ambitious targets
The Minister concluded by setting a clear, ambitious target for the revitalised passenger rail system: to ensure 600 million rail passenger journeys per annum by 2030.
This process is underpinned by the government’s commitment to implementing the National Rail Policy (2022) and the Private Sector Participation Framework (2023), which together “enshrine public ownership of our rail and port network while promoting private sector investment to enhance efficiency and effectiveness”. The RFI process is being facilitated through a Memorandum of Agreement with the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and National Treasury.
The launch of the passenger rail RFI follows the initial phase of the freight and port RFI, which closed on May 30, 2025, having received 162 formal responses, including 52 from international entities. Transnet is expected to issue the first Request for Proposal based on the freight RFI results before the end of 2025.
The Passenger Rail RFI is open for eight weeks, from 26 October to 15 December 2025, with Minister Creecy stating, “These RFIs are not tenders – they are an invitation for the market to help us design the future of rail. Together, we can rebuild confidence in public transport, open up investment opportunities, and connect South Africans to the growth we all deserve.”
