The smooth sleek nose of the train slides, gleaming, into the freshly tiled station. But this is not London’s Waterloo or the Gare du Nord in Paris. It is our very own Sandton station in Johannesburg.
The Gautrain officially opened for business at 5.24am on Tuesday June 8 2010. For many South Africans it was their first experience of high-speed rail: the Gautrain is the first of its kind in the country.
Jerome Govender, CEO of the Bombela Concession Company, told the Mail & Guardian that about 500 people took the train from Sandton station to OR Tambo International Airport between 5.30am and 6.30am. “The first four trains were filled to capacity. In total, we transferred about 1Â 000 people in an hour,” he said. “It’s been stressful, it’s been nervous, but it’s been great.”
While many people turned up simply for the sake of riding the train, many others were there to use the train to get to the airport to catch their flights.
“I was overwhelmed by how positive everyone is. To see people arriving at 5am, luggage in hand, trusting the Gautrain to take them to the airport on time, it was amazing,” said Govender.
Staff from Myers Tennier accounting firm decided to use the Gautrain to get to a meeting. They met at Sandton station at 7am, all wearing Bafana Bafana T-shirts. “We wanted to show our support for them. It’s fun,” said clerk Johanna Moyo.
Wet cement
The smell of wet cement still hangs in the air at Sandton station. The parking lot is still being built and there are no Gautrain signs outside. There are three Gautrain platforms well below street level: commuters descend three long escalators before arriving at their train.
Hundreds of customer-support officials were on hand on Tuesday to help first-time travellers purchase their Gautrain gold cards and load them with credit at the ticketing machines. The cards are used to pay for the train, bus and parking.
The airport carriages are more spacious, and have areas for luggage. They are identified by airplane stickers on the doors, and do not open at Marlboro or Rhodesfield stations. The seats in the commuter cars are more tightly packed. Announcements of upcoming stations are made in English, while the electronic signboard flashes the same message in English, Afrikaans and Zulu. South African Police Service officers and Gautrain security personnel constantly patrolled the length of the train, even outnumbering passengers. There are security cameras on the trains and in the stations.
Lack of visible signage
From the airport side, many tourists made use of the train to get into the heart of Johannesburg, despite the lack of visible signage. The Gautrain does, however, appear in the Department of Transport’s booklet on how to get around South Africa during the Soccer World Cup, and it appeared signs were in the process of being put up as the M&G left the airport.
When the M&G arrived at OR Tambo International Airport, the ticketing machines were down, causing a long queue at the ticket office.
Kelly Franks, an actuarial analyst, had just flown in from Cape Town for two days of meetings in Sandton. She and a colleague took advantage of the fact that the company car that was supposed to collect them was unavailable, and decided to use the train. “It’s quite exciting.”
She added that they would probably take a metered taxi from Sandton station to their 9am meeting.
For Sharon Hilliard, her mother Charlotte and their domestic worker Johanna Mokobodi, their ride on the Gautrain on Tuesday morning was “just an adventure”. Hilliard told the M&G that they had parked at the airport, because they live nearby, and were taking the train into Sandton to have lunch at the Michelangelo Hotel. “I think it’s brilliant. I’d much rather use it as opposed to driving,” she said.