Activist group #UniteBehind has called on commuters to come out and air their grievances about the state of the train service on Thursday in a protest to be held at Cape Town station.
The group says they are expecting around 500 people from different civil society organisations including Equal Education, Reclaim the City, Social Justice Coalition and Right2Know to join the protest.
#UniteBehind spokesperson Zukie Vuka says the aim of the rally is to ask the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) for an extension on train tickets and to listen to the grievances of everyday commuters.
“The rally is set for between 3pm and 5pm. We want to inform commuters we are calling on Prasa for an extension on the validity of train tickets to at least two months, considering the overcrowding, cancellations and having to make last-minute plans for alternative transportation,” she said.
Vuka says speaking to commuters will help identify needs.
She adds interaction between the organisations, commuters, Prasa and the City’s transport department could prove beneficial.
“We know about trains burning, but no one is reporting anything. We will thus be asking commuters to come forward as we are the ones who know what happens on trains,” says Vuka.
“Prasa cannot solve anything on their own, involving us as commuters could prove to be beneficial.”