A man was transported to Groote Schuur Hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a train near Southfield on Tuesday.
As reported by Netwerk24, the man had been attempting to cross the railway line illegally. Life Healthcare paramedics, ER24 paramedics and the fire brigade all responded to the incident. The man, believed to be in his fifties, was found beside the railway line with multiple injuries, and advanced life-support equipment was required to transport him to hospital.
Metrorail spokesperson Riana Scott said that trains were unable to use outgoing tracks while police investigated the scene, however incoming trains were not affected. She cautions people to cross railway lines only at designated spots, as trains are fast-moving and cannot stop in time to prevent a collision.
A train must begin breaking at 50 metres for it to come to a standstill.
Another pedestrian was struck by a train between Southfield and Heathfield stations on August 8, but was not seriously injured.
A Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) train that derailed between Bellville and Tygerberg train stations affected train movements between the two stops on Monday.
No deaths or injuries were reported, and Metrorail states that service recovery is underway at Kraaifontein, Wellington, Strand, and Muldervlei stations. The public rail service initially announced that its commuters would experience delays of 120 minutes or more, but this waiting time was later reduced to approximately 60 minutes.
The Passenger Rail Agency (Prasa) has also announced it will embark on the first step of its multi-billion rand modernisation plan this week. These signalling upgrades will affect thousands of Cape Town’s commuters in the upcoming days.
