Kei rail licence to be issued soon

FREIGHT AND passenger services will soon be up and running on the long-awaited Kei Rail tracks. A meeting between the Department of Transport and the South African Rail Safety Regulator on January 9 was “very fruitful,” according to department spokesperson Ncedo Kumbaca. Department officials have managed to “tie up all loose ends,” he says, and an operator’s licence will be issued within the next fortnight. The R120 million project has been delayed several times since it was first announced in 2003. Its purpose is to restore 300 kilometres of track between East London and Mthatha.