Addressing Informal Settlements Along Railway Lines in South Africa

1. Portfolio Committee on HousingSiyabonga GamaTransnet Limited 14 November 2006

2. Request for a briefing • Letter dated 24 October 2006 • Request for a briefing on informal settlements along the railway lines

3. INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS ON THE RAIL RESERVE November 2006

4. Problem statement • Witnessed the mushrooming of informal settlements alongside railway lines • Statutes dictate that you may not evict communities unless you have alternative property to resettle them • Proximity to train operations exposes communities to severe danger • Negative impact on safety, security, operations and asset integrity • Fencing structures have been vandalised/removed

5. Problem statement continued • Increasing pressure on safety – settlements too close to railway lines • Increasing likelihood of accidents • Illegal level crossings – pedestrian and vehicles on daily basis increasing risk of fatalities • Costly and time consuming evictions and resettlements (currently cost to Spoornet +_ R2.5m per site)

6. Region High Medium Low Central Region (Durban – Gauteng – Polokwane corridor) 27 41 36 Western Region (Cape Town – EL – PE – Bloemfontein – Northern Cape corridor) 10 8 18 Eastern Region (Richards Bay – Ermelo – Witbank – Nelspruit corridor) 4 32 30 TOTAL 41 81 84 Number of settlements

7. Impact on Operations • Negatively affects Train Schedule (speed restrictions) • Illegal crossings result - on average 150 fatalities per annum • Crime (obstructions on railway line, theft, damaging signals) has escalated in areas where railway reserve is traversed by informal settlements • Almost impossible to get emergency vehicles into informal settlements • Delay in emergency and clean-up operations

8. Impact on Infrastructure • Erosion of rail embankment • Vandalism/sabotage of signalling systems – can lead to derailments • Theft of overhead Cables – leads to derailments and electrocutions • Vandalism/sabotage of points • Threat to maintenance personnel

9. Impact on Safety • Increased risk of accidents • Uncontrolled pedestrian crossing of lines • Health hazards to employees, passengers and inhabitants of settlements • Illegal level crossings (vehicles) • Hazardous goods transported by rail – ammonia gas, fertilizer, diesel, explosives, disastrous consequences when trains derail

10. Impact on inhabitants of informal settlements • Death or injury in case of accident/hazmat incident • Children grow up next to rail – no natural fear for moving trains • Lack of basic services

11. Challenges • Legal process (long) • Dependency on Municipalities for alternative housing as required by Prevention of illegal eviction act (PIE) • Limited capacity (manpower, funds, land availability) • Community resistance

12. Possible solutions • Integrated approach (Government, Transnet, other SOEs) - Provision of housing and establishment of temporary relocation areas • Interventions from the Legislature and Cabinet • Legislative amendments • Community awareness and participation

13. Assistance required • Municipalities to create Temporary Relocation Areas for urgent relocation of hot spot settlements (safety/crime etc) • Provincial & National Government to provide funding for TRA’s as well as policies regarding establishment of TRA’s and top down pressure on Municipalities to accommodate urgent requests for relocation of informal settlements • Judiciary - courts to accept relocation to a TRA in the granting of an eviction order

14. Assistance required continued • Legislative amendments : • The very wide interpretation of the applicability of the PIE Act • PIE to clarify at what stage an informal structure can still be demolished without a court order, and at what stage it can still be considered to be trespassing • Responsibilities of SAPS to act when a new land invasion is reported by a land owner

15. Assistance required continued • Legislative amendments : • Permanent eviction orders for properties/land portions (if land gets re-invaded, repeat execution of initial eviction order in stead of going through the whole process again • Amendment to Prevention of Illegal Eviction and Occupation of Land Act (Act 19 of 1998) – to be amended to reflect all of the above

16. Eviction/Relocation Procedure • Identify and prioritise resettlement • Negotiate with affected municipality for alternative housing/land (including municipal process for housing subsidies) • Community consultation – negotiated relocation vs court ordered eviction • Registration of affected persons – qualifiers vs non-qualifiers

17. Eviction/Relocation Procedure continued • Application for eviction order • Execution of eviction order • Securing the land • Emergency Housing Policy – not effective in urgent relocations (still takes too long)

18. Stakeholders : Dealing with the challenges • Minister for Public Enterprises • Minister of Transport • Other Government Departments (Housing, DPLG, Land Affairs etc) • Provincial and Local Authorities • Transnet • Judiciary • Ward Councillors and Ward Committees • NGO’s, CBO’s, Civic Organisations, Organisation for Landless People • Community leaders • Occupants of informal settlements

19. Current Interventions • Relocation Strategy – Identify, prioritise, commence negotiations with • Municipalities • Ward Councillors • Communities • Once alternative land is made available by the relevant municipality, commence with application for eviction order • If an eviction order is granted, Sheriff of the Court executes and costs referred back to Applicant • Fencing of cleared land where financially and topographically feasible • Pro-active identification of vulnerable areas and preventive fencing

20. Thank you