Design and construction of the Gautrain Rapid Rail Link

摘要

Public transport in South Africa is being transformed with the advent of the 77 km Gautrain Rapid Rail Link in Gauteng. The first phase was opened on 8 June 2010 and, at the time of writing, the second phase was scheduled to be completed by mid-2011. In September 2006, the Gauteng Provincial Government awarded the ZAR25 billion (£1 billion) project to the Bombela Concession Company on a public-private partnership basis, with the concessionaire obliged to design, build, commission, partly finance, operate and maintain the Gautrain System for 15 years following delivery of the full system. The new railway will relieve traffic congestion on the N3 expressway linking Johannesburg and Pretoria, act as a catalyst for social regeneration of decaying urban areas, stimulate economic development and job creation along the Gautrain corridor and encourage the use of public transport. The system also provides a dedicated premium airport service between Sandton and OR Tambo International Airport, as well as feeder and distribution bus services to stations. This paper describes the scope of the project, the participants and how they interacted, as well as the engineering solutions and methodologies adopted during the design and construction processes. The main challenges of this landmark project, and how these were overcome, also feature in the paper.