The South African Cabinet has effectively vetoed the Soweto monorail project announced by the Gauteng government in May this year.
There were major shortcomings in the process leading to the announcement of the project, government spokesperson Themba Maseko told journalists in Pretoria and Cape Town on Wednesday following Cabinet’s fortnightly meeting.
These included lack of consultation with key stakeholders, such as the minister of transport, the City of Johannesburg, the taxi industry and the South African Rail Commuter Corporation, and the fact that no thorough financial viability study was conducted, he said.
Cabinet repeated that all commuter rail proposals from all spheres of government, including private-sector initiatives, had to be subjected to the Multi-Criteria Matrix Appraisal Framework contained in the Consolidated Passenger Rail Plan approved by Cabinet last year.
Ministerial approval also had to be obtained prior to finalisation and announcements.
”Because of these considerations, Cabinet decided that the Soweto monorail project will not proceed at this stage.
”The Gauteng provincial government has been advised accordingly,” Maseko said. — Sapa