Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Dr Ismail Vadi, today announced that the Bombela Concession Company (BCC) has invited reputable and established suppliers to qualify as shortlisted bidders by submitting a compliant Request for Qualification (RFQ) document for the design, manufacture, supply and maintenance of 12 new electrical multiple units (train sets) as well as the design and construction of additional depot infrastructure for the Gautrain system.
Vadi said that in terms of the future plans of the Gautrain Management Agency and BCC to increase capacity on the Gautrain system, twelve 4-car train sets are required to meet the growing passenger demand. He indicated that since the start of its operations Gautrain has shown strong and consistent passenger growth. This has resulted in passenger overcrowding during peak periods necessitating additional train sets.
The Gautrain system has, to date, been able to transport over 50 million rail passengers and currently carries 1.4 million passengers per month. Vadi also emphasised the broader socio-economic development benefits of Gautrain stating that its objectives are in line with the strategic priorities of the provincial government, namely, accelerating economic growth and infrastructure delivery with an emphasis on job creation.
An independent assessment of the economic impact of Gautrain has been completed and the results have shown that the rapid rail system has created 34 800 direct job opportunities during construction and 922 sustainable jobs after the start of operations. Gautrain has stimulated property development in areas around its stations and thus has contributed to the goals of transit-oriented development, better land use and redressing apartheid spatial planning.
It is estimated that R46 billion total GDP impact has been added to the provincial economy due to property development induced by Gautrain, contributing a further 245 000 jobs. Registration to have access to the RFQ document is open and information on http://gautrainrfq.co.za.
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