GAUTRAIN FARES
Posted on 14 September 2009 by Railways Africa Editor
When construction began on the Gautrain project in 2006, a one-way ticket between Pretoria and Johannesburg was expected to cost around R20 – say R880 a month for a day-return ticket. In fact the fare is likely to be more than somewhat higher – and there are still costs like parking at the boarding station to be added in. On the other hand, with the cost of petrol alone at around R60 daily, plus promised toll charges of about R45, motorists could be in for something like R2,300 a month. At this level, a R50 train fare would be attractive by comparison.
That said, people all over the western world still elect to stay with car commuting despite ever-worsening traffic congestion. Gautrain planners are relying on the growing agony of Ben Schoeman driving to force people onto the train but there is still no certainty that they will do this in sufficient numbers to make the railway viable. As it happens, very few commuter lines in the world are profitable, the obvious exceptions being places like Hong Kong and Singapore, but they have exceptionally high population densities, which South Africa comes nowhere near emulating.
Related posts:
- GAUTRAIN FARES ANNOUNCED
- GAUTRAIN – PREPARE TO PAY FOR IT
- GAUTRAIN-AIRPORT MAY NOT BE READY
- GAUTRAIN FARE STRUCTURE
- GAUTRAIN AIRPORT FARES
