Pretoria – Maputo railway line

Pretoria – Maputo
Geographical data
continent	Africa
Country :	South Africa , Mozambique
Route data
Route length:	567 km
Gauge :	1067 mm ( cape track )
Legend from Pretoria West 0 Pretoria to Johannesburg Gautrain to Johannesburg Apiesrivier Nelson Mandela Drive (M3) Gautrain 1 Mears St. Elandspoort Road (M5) 2 Devenish St. 3 Walker St. Walker Street (M7) Walkerspruit Lynnwood Road (M6) 4th Loftus Versfeldpark 5 Rissik 5.7 Hatfield Duncan Street (M7) 6th Hartbeesspruit Hartbeesspruit Francis Baard Street ( N4 ) Danie Joubert Freeway ( N1 / N4) to and from Capital Park 11 Koedoespoort Connection to Transnet Engineering Connection Transwerk Dykor Street (M15) 13 Silverton Moreletaspruit 14th Eersterus 16 Waltloo 17th Denneboom Pienaarsrivier 20th First factory Mamelodi Gardens to Sentrarand marshalling yard Solomon Mahlangu Drive (M10) 25th Greenview Pyramid South – Sentrarand railway line from pyramid south triangle 27 Panpoort 34 Van der Merwe 39 Rayton to Cullinan 45 Elandsrivier 50 Fotfar to Ekandustria, Bronkhorstspruit 55 Skietpoort 63 Bronkhorstspruit Bronkhorstspruit 74 Wilgerivier Wilgerivier 81 Crown Douglas Gauteng - Mpumalanga provincial border Saalboomspruit 89 Balmoral N4 98 Wakefield by Bulpan 106 Clewer 110 Skoongesig to and from Ermelo ( Richards Bay Coal Line ) 114 Witbank 121 Tavispan 127 Olifantsrivier Lepelle (Olifantsrivier) 135 Hillside 142 Uitkyk 151 Middelburg Connection to Industria Cowen Ntuli St. ( N11 ) Klein Olifantsrivier 161 Derwent according to Roossenekal 172 Pan 184 Arnot to and from Ermelo (Richards Bay Coal Line) 200 Wonderfontein 206 Sunbury 217 Belfast to Lydenburg 224 Bergendal N4 234 Dalmanutha 242 Fairview by Ermelo (Richards Bay Coal Line) 250 Machadodorp Leeuspruit 254 Goedgeluk 261 Waterval Boven Route until 1908 Line until 1964/1966 Elandsrivier National road N4 (381/459 meters) NZASM tunnel (213 meters) Ondervalle Five Arch Bridge Route until 1965 (190/316 meters) Elandsrivier N4 Joubertspruit 275 Waterval Onder Weltevredespruit Skoonspruit 283 Sycamore N4 287 Heysford 291 Arlie 298 Hemlock 306 Ngodwana 314 Citriodora 320 Elandhoek N4 325 Reception 333 Rivulets 338 Beating N4 340 Sternberg 343 Alkmaar 349 Broham 251 Cairn N4 356 Mataffin from Graskop 361 Nelspruit N4 370 Mayfern Rietspruit 377 Karino Tipperary 383 Crocodile Gate N4 388 Gorge 401 Boulders Kaaprivier by Barberton N4 402 Kaapmuiden according to Tzaneen 411 Rockvale 412 Althorpe Jam Tin Creek 415 Magnesite 422 Malelane connection 431 impala 443 Hectorspruit 452 Oorsprong 459 Tenbosch 467 Koorsboom by Tzaneen 472 Komatipoort to Richards Bay Komatirivier State border South Africa - Mozambique 479 88 ( CFM ) Ressano Garcia 84 (CFM) Mussone 80 (CFM) Incomáti 76 (CFM) Chanculo 69 (CFM) Movene 62 (CFM) Secongene by Xinavane 53 (CFM) Moamba 47 (CFM) Maguanza 39 (CFM) Passes 31 (CFM) Tenga 25 (CFM) Siduaba 20 (CFM) Matola-Gare 15 (CFM) Daniel 12 (CFM) Bairroda Liberdade from Goba (Goba line) 10 (CFM) Machava to and from Matola port Rio Infulene from and to Malvernia (Limpopo line) National road EN2 5 (CFM) Infulene 2 (CFM) Cabine B Maputo – Katembe bridge 567 0 (CFM) Maputo

The Pretoria – Maputo railway (also Delagoabahn or Oosterlijn or The Iron Road ) is a railway line that connects the South African capital Pretoria with the Mozambican capital Maputo and the port there . It is 567 kilometers long and electrified between Pretoria and Komatipoort on the border between the two states . The operators are Transnet Freight Rail on the South African side and Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique (CFM) in Mozambique

history

Route profile

A long planning phase preceded the construction of a railway line to connect the South African Republic with the port in Delagoa Bay on the neighboring Portuguese colonial area. The government in Pretoria approved such a project for a private railway company in 1870 and promised to cover 850 farms. Because the licensed company could not raise the capital initially required, the construction project had to be postponed. After several years of further preparations, the government decided in 1876 to take the construction into their own hands. The Portuguese officer Joaquim José Machado undertook a new terrain survey in 1881 and 1882 to find an optimal route, as some gold fields on both sides of the Crocodile River should have easy access to a railway connection.

In 1872 the colonial administration of Mozambique issued a concession for the first time to build a railway line from Lourenço Marques (since 1976 Maputo) to Pretoria. A corresponding agreement was concluded between the government of the South African Republic and the colonial administration in 1875. The project did not progress at first. It was not until March 1, 1890, that the line from Lourenço Marques to the Mozambican border station Ressano Garcia was opened.

A serious obstacle when planning the route on the South African side was the steep mountainous terrain and deep valley cuts not far from Komatipoort in the area of ​​the Crocodile River. These terrain characteristics had once delayed the construction of an efficient road. In addition, in the 1880s a loan of half a million pounds failed on the Amsterdam capital market. The construction work began on June 2, 1887 and was completed after seven years on October 20, 1894, so that the entire route could be opened to traffic on November 2, 1894. The official opening took place on July 8, 1895 by President Kruger .

Opening dates of the route sections:

• Lourenço Marques – Ressano Garcia on March 1, 1890
• Ressano Garcia – Komatipoort on July 1, 1891
• Komatipoort – Hectorspruit on October 1, 1891
• Hectorspruit – Malelane on December 28, 1891
• Malelane – Kaapmuiden in March 1892
• Kaapmuiden – Krokodilpoort in April 1892
• Krokodilpoort – Nelspruit on June 20, 1892
• Nelspruit – Airlie on December 30, 1893
• Airie – Pretoria on November 2, 1894

NZASM number 994 Vaderland with an operating weight of 32.3 t

On the South African side, it was operated by the Nederlandsch-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg Maatschappij (NZASM) founded in 1887 . A special feature was the 3.5 kilometer long rack railway ( Riggenbach system ) between Waterval Boven and Waterval Onder, which, along with a section of the Benguela Railway, was the only rack railway in Africa. From 1894 to 1897, the NZASM procured four machines with the B1'z axis order with coupled adhesion and gear drive from the Esslingen machine factory to operate the cogwheel line . They were given the numbers 991 to 994 and, according to their weight, were known as 32-ton trucks. The 32-tonner carried a sliding load of 110 tons on the 18 ‰ steep adhesion section or on the 50 ‰ steep rack section. They were coupled to the end of the train as sliding locomotives. After the line could be used continuously, for many decades it formed one of the most important transport routes for goods traffic from the northern region of South Africa. Even before the Second Boer War, the intention was to build an adhesion railway, as the capacity of the rack railway was limited to 2500 to 3000 tons per day, while 8000 tons were transported on the subsequent adhesion routes.

On April 1, 1908, a new route was opened between Waterval Boven and Waterval Onder. The distance between the Waterval Boven and Waterval Onder stations increased from 6.84 to 13.68 kilometers. The new line accounts for 12.07 kilometers of this. The cost of this new line was then £ 140,000 . This route is still in operation today, with some new bridges and tunnels built between 1964 and 1966. The operation of the railroad went after the end of the Second Boer War on the Central South African Railways (CSAR) and from 1910 on the South African Railways (SAR / SAS) . As part of a government policy aimed at economic independence under Pieter Willem Botha and the changed political situation in southern Africa, construction of a new railway line from Komatipoort via Swaziland to the port of Richards Bay (then Natal province ) began in 1983 . In this way, cargo from the eastern Transvaal could be delivered on politically safe territory to its own nearby seaport.

Route description

Start of the route at Pretoria Station

After the line has left the main train station in Pretoria , it crosses the Apiesrivier and runs parallel to the Gautrain for the next six kilometers to the east . Both routes cross the Walkerspruit and touch the Loftus Versfeld Stadium . The Gautrain ends in Hatfield. In the further course the national road N4 , the Church Street / Kerkstraat (since 2012 Stanza Bopape St.) and the national road N1 will be crossed. Shortly before the Koedoespoort train station, there is a connection towards Capital Park via an arched triangle. In the further course the Moreletaspruit and the Pienaarsrivier are crossed. In Greenview there are connecting curves to the Pyramid South – Sentrarand railway line . At Mamelodi the railway line leaves the urban area of ​​Pretoria. In Rayton a branch line branches off to Cullinan in the north. After the Bronkhorstspruit train station , the line crosses the river of the same name. Crown Douglas is the last train station in Gauteng Province . The first station in Mpumalanga is Balmoral. Shortly after the train station, the route crosses the N4 and runs south of the motorway to Schoongezicht, a district of eMalahleni .

Witbank station is the central station in eMalahleni . There is a connection via the Richards Bay Coal Line to the port of Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal . At the north-eastern end of eMalahleni, the route crosses the Olifant River. From here the route is in the Highveld. Middelburg train station is 37 kilometers from Witbank train station. The line from Ermelo joins here . After the station, the line crosses Cowen Ntuli Street ( National Road N11 ). North of the Middelburgdam it leads over the Klein Olifantsrivier. At the Derwent station there is a branch to Roossenekal ( Limpopo ), which is 90 kilometers away . Shortly before the Wonderfontein train station there is another connection to Ermelo via an arched triangle. After 17 kilometers, Belfast train station is reached, where the now disused line to Lydenburg branches off. After Belfast, the route leads past the memorials of the Battle of Bergendal, which lasted from 21 to 27 August 1900. East of the station of the same name, it again crosses under the N4 and reaches the Machadodorp train station in eNtokozweni . The line to Breyten and Ermelo, which was opened in 1908, branches off here. After the line has left Machadodorp, it crosses the Leeuspruit and winds its way to Waterval Boven station in Emgwenya.

Bw Waterval Boven around 1895

In Waterval Boven, the South African Republic acquired 78 hectares of land from Farm Doornhoek for the construction of a railway depot . Here, on the edge of the Highveld, a cogwheel railway went into operation between Waterval Boven and Waterval Onder on June 20, 1894. A height difference of 208 meters had to be overcome over a distance of 7.5 kilometers.

The NZASM tunnel with rack

For this purpose, a 213 meter long tunnel was built right next to the Elandsrivier waterfall. Not far from the tunnel, a five-arch stone bridge, the Five-Arch Bridge / Vyfboogbrug, was built over the Dwaalheuwel Spruit. However, since the rack railway reached its load limits, an adhesion section was built. This leads from Waterval Boven station in a large curve to the north and crosses the Elandsrivier on a high bridge. This is where the Waterval Boven railway accident occurred on November 15, 1949 . It then follows the Elandsrivier and leads through the 381 meter long tunnel no. 1 down to Ondervalle station. After this station she reaches tunnel no. 2 with a length of 190 meters. After the “Horseshoe” bend, it crosses the Elandsrivier and follows the N4 to Waterval Onder station. It opened on April 1, 1908. Between 1964 and 1966, some changes were made to the route. Due to the two-track expansion and the upcoming electrification , the bridges and tunnels were too small. New bridges were built over the Elandsrivier. Tunnel No. 1 received a second tube in 1964. It is 459 meters long. Tunnel no. 2 was replaced by a 316 meter long new building. The old bridges are still standing next to their successors. The old NZASM tunnel and the Five-Arch Bridge / Vyfboogbrug were used for road traffic from 1908 until the construction of the Elands Pass in 1936. They have been a National Monument since 1963. At the NZASM tunnel there are still remains of track with a piece of rack.

In Waterval Onder the route has arrived in the Lowveld. The railway line follows the course of the Elandsrivier on the south side up to its confluence with the Krokodilrivier near the Reception station. It leads over the Weltevredespruit and the Skoonspruit. The N4 also follows this course, but occasionally changes the river side and also crosses the railway line. From the reception, the railway line runs along the crocodile river to Nelspruit , the provincial capital. The railway line to Graskop via Sabie , which was opened in 1913, branches off at Nelspruit station . After the route has left the city center again, it runs again under the N4 to the Crocodile River. Further east, the Delagoa Railway comes along the mouths of the Rietspruit, Tipperary, Blinkwater and Kaaprivier rivers. Just before the Kaapmuiden train station, the N4 crosses it. The railway line to Barberton, opened in 1896, and the line to Tzaneen, opened in 1971, branch off at Kaapmuiden station . On the 127 kilometers between Waterval Onder and Kaapmuiden, 22 train stations are passed. This is followed by the Rockvale, Althorpe and Magnesite stations until the line reaches Malelane. It runs north of Malelane Airport between Malelane and Impala train stations. As far as Komatipoort , the railway line is between the Crocodile River and the N4. It runs through the train stations Hectorspruit, Oorsprong, Tenbosch and Koorsboom. Komatipoort is South Africa's border station. It is 472 kilometers from Pretoria Central Station. This is where the railway line to Richards Bay via Swaziland, opened in February 1986, branches off . There was also a railway line to Tzaneen, the southern end of which was moved to Kaapmuiden to protect the Kruger National Park in 1971. Now the route crosses the Komati River and leads to the state border in Mozambique.

Terminal station Estação do Caminho de Ferro de Maputo

The Mozambican border station Ressano Garcia is located directly on the state border , the station building of which was built in Art Deco style. The station is on the Rio Incomáti. Now the route runs along the Rio Incomáti via Mussone and Incomáti to Chanculo. The city of Moamba can be reached via the Movene and Secongene stations. A route to Xinavane branched off here. However, this was shut down. From Moamba, the route leads via Maguanza and Pessene to Tenga, where the Tenga railway accident occurred on May 26, 2002 . In the further course the stations Siduaba, Matola-Gare, Daniel and Bairroda Liberdade are reached. This is followed by Machava station, where the Goba line and the connecting railway to the port of Matola branch off. After Machava station, the railway crosses the Rio Infulene, where the Limpopo line branches off. Immediately after the junction, it passes under the national road EN2 and the Infulene stations and Cabine B. Shortly before the Estação do Caminho de Ferro de Maputo terminus, two kilometers away, the route is spanned by the Maputo – Katembe bridge, which was completed in 2018.

business

In addition to freight trains, passenger trains also operate. In South Africa, the Gauteng Metrorail operates the Pretoria Station – Rayton route. The Shosholoza Meyl runs on the Komatipoort – Pretoria route to Johannesburg. Rovos Rail has individual routes in its program that lead over this route. In Mozambique, passenger trains run between Maputo and Ressano Garcia, which are to be integrated into the MetroBus Maputo suburban railway system. Cross-border passenger traffic does not take place.

Web links

Commons : Delagoabahn  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Rovos Rail (English)
• Routes of the Metrorail (English)
• Portos e Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique (Portuguese)
• CFM timetable ( Memento from May 16, 2013 in the Internet Archive )

proof

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Inter-provincial arterial lines. . In: Mpumalanga Provincial Government, Department: Public Works, Roads and Transport . Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Anonymus, [H. Haevernick]: The Transvaal gold fields. Words accompanying the card . In: Dr. A. Petermanns Mitteilungen, Volume 31, Justus Perthes , Gotha 1885, p. 89
3. ^ Neil Robinson: World Rail Atlas and historical summary. Volume 7, page 59: North, East and Central Africa. World Rail Atlas Ltd., 2009, ISBN 978-954-92184-3-5
4. ^ ^{A b} Portuguese East Africa: Mozambique. In: Viktor von Röll (ed.): Encyclopedia of the Railway System . 2nd Edition. Volume 8: Passenger tunnel - Schynige Platte Railway . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Berlin / Vienna 1917, p.  94 f.
5. ^ The seven-year long construction of Delagoa Bay railway line starts. . In: South African History Online . Archived from the original on December 30, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
6. ^ Building of the Delagoa Bay railway line is completed. It is to be opened for traffic on November 2, 1894 . In: South African History Online . Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
7. ^ Delagoa Bay railway line is officially opened. . In: South African History Online . Retrieved June 24, 2014.
8. ^ Colonial history of Nelspruit. . In: South African History Online . Retrieved June 30, 2014.
9. ↑ Donald Frank Holland: Steam Locomotives of the South African Railways, Volume 1: 1859-1910, pages 115-117, 126. David & Charles, 1971, ISBN 978-954-92184-3-5
10. ^ Hans Steffan : New cogwheel locomotives . In: Die Lokomotive , 1905, pp. 164–168 ( ANNO - AustriaN Newspapers Online )
11. ^ ^{A b} Franz Baltzer : The colonial railways with a special focus on Africa. Page 132, 133, Reprint-Verlag-Leipzig, 1916, ISBN 978-3-8262-0233-9
12. ^ List of Renamed Streets. . In: tshwane.gov.za . Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
13. ^ History of Area. . In: redcliffestate.co.za . Archived from the original on June 26, 2014. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
14. ^ South Africa's only rack-assisted railway: Waterval Onder to Waterval Boven. . In: www.railwaysafrica.com . Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
15. ^ No ruling on Mbombela name change. . In: www.news24.com . Retrieved June 30, 2014.
16. ↑ PERFIL DO DISTRITO DE Moamba Provinca DE MAPUTO, page 14 . In: www.portaldogoverno.gov.mz . Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
17. ^ Train Routes . www.shosholozameyl.co.za. June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.