Introduction
Project Value: 138,000,000 USD
Project Duration: November 2015 – February 2020 (expected)
As part of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa’s (PRASA) railway capacity building initiatives, JG Afrika were appointed by Maziya General Services, the civil and railway trackwork contractor, as the design consultants to supply specialist railway engineering solutions for the implementation of the “Design, Construction and Implementation of a New Railway Signalling System and the Installation of the New Cape Town Centralised Traffic Control in Bellville” project, where numerous railway trackwork layout modifications are required to improve the capacity, operational efficiency and flexibility of the rail network. JG Afrika worked closely with the contractor to ensure the most optimal and cost-effective design solution was provided, which conformed with the strict requirements and specifications as set forth by PRASA.
The scope of work for JG Afrika’s appointment was as Lead Rail Designer and as part of the Technical Team, involving Railway Track and ancillary works, Signalling and OHTE disciplines. Twenty-eight (28) stations were identified where operational efficiency improvements and flexibility to the railway network were required encompassing, inter alia, the removal of single and double slips, diamond crossings and the introduction of new 1:9 and 1:12 turnouts with the required geometric reconfigurations and realignments, as well as remodelled and new station platforms.
The approximate construction value associated with JG Afrika’s designs amounts to USD18 million.
Project Highlights
As an integral part of the Technical Team, JG Afrika was able to provide innovative solutions in a timeous manner and respond to inter-disciplinary coordination proactively and effectively.
The requirement to always provide an operational train service in the heart of a major metro network, even during construction activities, required attention to detail in the design process, and especially the construction stage planning, by our experienced railway engineers, which delivered upon these requirements during the execution phase.
The ability of JG Afrika to provide all the railway, structural and civil engineering consultancy functions inhouse, inclusive of geotechnical services, proved invaluable and resulted in a one-stop service to the Client.
Scope of Services Provided
The scope of work involved JG Afrika providing the following services: Project Management | Engineering design development of the railway system from conceptual design through to detail design for civil, structural and railway trackwork – bulk earthworks, railway formation; railway track structure, level-crossings, formation drainage, platforms, subways and associated design reports | Engineering staging drawings for the complex railway track layouts at major junctions in order to provide a continuous operational train service during construction | Condition assessment of existing railway trackwork | Geotechnical investigations and interpretive reporting | Bills of Quantities for bulk earthworks, railway formation, railway trackwork, drainage culverts, with attendant data pack templates and requirements for quality assurance during construction | Management of survey specifications, LiDAR and survey contractors | Design support and quality inspections during construction | Independent structural engineer’s incident report | Professional sign-off on completion.
Concluding Remarks
These capacity upgrade interventions have had the desired result of replacing an outdated signalling system, and at the same time through specific geometric track layout modifications, introduced more flexibility and an increase in capacity to the rail network.
JG Afrika’s ability to integrate seamlessly with other design disciplines, and oftentimes assume the lead role, has proven itself over and over.
You can read more about our other Rail Projects by clicking on the links below.
PRASA Gauteng II Resignalling Rail Gauteng
Iron Ore Line Sishen to Saldhana
Cape Town Container Terminal Expansion