New rail bridge on Goba rail line

A new railway bridge over the Umbeluzi River in Mozambique is due to be built near the current bridge, which is considered to be unsafe, said the engineering department of Mozambican state port and rail manager CFM. The daily newspaper Notícias reported that the department said the public tender for the project was underway. When the Ressano Garcia railroad was at a standstill, the Goba line was used as an alternative route to carry goods from South Africa to the port of Maputo and vice versa. However this alternative was quickly set aside due to safety issues on the bridge over the Umbeluzi River. The lack of safety saw the SA authorities warning against using the Goba line as an alternative route to carry cargo accumulated at Komatipoort when the Ressano Garcia line was not operating. The Goba line is around 226 kilometres long and links the Matsapa Industrial Park and the port of Maputo. It has capacity for trains with a maximum of 50 trucks travelling at speeds of between 50 and 60 kilometres per hour. According to information from the Swaziland railway company, the Goba line is in good condition both on the Swazi side and the Mozambican side, as a result of repairs that were recently carried out. The Goba line has been used to carry sugar produced in Swaziland to the port of Maputo, with volumes of between 200 000 and 240 000 tons per year as well as to import most of the goods the country needs.