South Africa’s R50 billion Port of Gauteng development is a “pivotal opportunity” to confront inefficiencies that are crippling the country’s economic corridors, says Road Freight Association (RFA) CEO Gavin Kelly.
Reacting to the recently published Port of Gauteng White Paper, Kelly said developers had targeted “a very ambitious project” to address “huge shortfalls in the current logistics network”, especially regarding multimodal operations involving rail and the “fundamental necessity” of allowing the private sector to drive logistics integration.
“The R50 billion project represents a pivotal opportunity to address the systemic inefficiencies crippling South Africa’s economic arteries, particularly the Durban-Gauteng freight corridor. The RFA has long championed an integrated, multimodal logistics network where road and rail function as collaborative partners, not competitors,” Kelly said.
He said the vision outlined in the white paper, “to create a premier trade gateway that restores balance to our supply chain,” resonated deeply with the principles of bringing about integrated freight operations and infrastructure.
“Over the past four decades, the RFA has advocated for the development of inland ports to alleviate the severe congestion at ports, and the freight handling operations immediately surrounding ports, as well as inland depots like City Deep,” Kelly said.
“The White Paper correctly identifies the unsustainable pressure on the Port of Durban, a bottleneck that ripples through the entire economy – with an echo in the current inland freight handling depot.”
The RFA has spent decades interacting with Sars customs to make cross-border freight movement as simple and efficient as possible.
“This has, together with other stakeholders, realised the current electronic clearance processes and the drive towards SmartBorders – making goods declaration and clearance possible anywhere and at any time by registered importers and exporters,” Kelly said.
This no longer requires a centralised facility where importers and exporters need to present themselves and the relevant documentation.
“Blockchain has also brought efficiencies – however, container staging at strategic hubs outside the ports, such as Cato Ridge and the proposed hub in Gauteng, will unlock further significant efficiencies,” Kelly said.
The RFA has driven the call to shift rail-friendly cargo off the road onto rail.
“The access to rail by private operators is key to the efficient operation of rail – but comes with its own operational challenges. The reality that rail currently handles less than 14% of volumes on the Durban-Gauteng Corridor is a vivid reminder of the work that needs to be done. This is in stark contrast to the National Development Plan (NDP) 50% target and highlights the gravity of the situation,” Kelly said.
However, he added that it was critical to emphasise that rail could not succeed in a vacuum.
“The success of the Port of Gauteng will be largely dependent on the efficiency of the road transport interface as road freight operations provide the vital ‘first- and last-mile’ services that connect the rail network to the broader economy and customers who do not have sidings or efficient access to rail depots,” he said.
The White Paper envisages seamless train-to-truck transfers – which are a critical aspect if any success is to be achieved; think about the SAR container service in the 70s and 80s where dedicated fleets brought resized containers to the door of the customer.
“To achieve this, substantial investment must extend beyond the boundaries of the port to the surrounding road infrastructure and intermodal facilities. It is essential that a true gateway is developed and built, not just a simple relocation of the bottleneck from Durban to Gauteng,” Kelly said.
He added that the integration of Performance-Based Standards (PBS) vehicles into the design of the Port of Gauteng was “intriguing”.
“Cognisance must be taken of the fact that this is still a pilot project, as well as the effect this will have on all road freight operators who operate standard, legal combinations,” he said.
The RFA has been a leading advocate for the research and development of more efficient road freight vehicles for decades.
“Smart trucks are not necessarily vehicles that carry more payload – they are vehicles that bring compound efficiencies into the baseline operations of a fleet. That is where the future of smart trucks lies,” Kelly said.
“Vehicles (and drivers) that are safer, more efficient, and reduce road wear per tonne of freight moved reduce fuel consumption and bring about lower operational costs. They are the non-negotiable components in modern, competitive road freight logistics operations – for both micro and large road freight companies (operators).”
Kelly said the Port of Gauteng may provide the "missing link" that can make rail competitive again.
“By providing the world-class infrastructure and reliability that shippers demand, it creates a viable business case for the road-to-rail shift. The realities of new market freight access also need to be taken into consideration – for example, the demands of e-commerce and the logistical supply chains that this requires,” he said.
Kelly added that over the past five years, freight had morphed from large consignments into consumer operations with very small consignments – sometimes a single item – and this had changed the realities within warehouses and consumer logistics supply chains.
“The Port of Gauteng will need to be efficient and fast to deal with this demand – irrespective of the mode it uses to arrive at the port. And if this is to be containerised via rail to the port, then there will be huge asks on turnaround times, scheduling of services, and destuffing of containers at the port. It will place a huge ‘ask’ on rail services,” Kelly said.
He said the association supported integrated modal operations – provided there was transparent cooperative competition within the port for various operators (rail, warehousing and road), based on a foundation of operational excellence and fair, competitive access for all parties.
“Port of Gauteng is a project that aligns with the long-term vision of the RFA for a functional, efficient, and integrated South African logistics supply chain. The success of the port will be our members' success, and ultimately, the nation's success,” Kelly said.
“The association looks forward to collaborating with all relevant stakeholders in this project to improve the integration and operation of the logistics network.”
