An improvement directive has been issued to Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) by the Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) following an inspection of the rail infrastructure on the east side of the Belville Station.

The defects identified by the RSR included cracked turnout components, worn rails and track geometry which were all in poor condition. Due to the poor condition of the Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) lines a 15 km  per hour speed restriction was  imposed with immediate effect . TFR is required to submit a comprehensive corrective action project plan by 18 April 2014 to refurbish the line to its original design specifications; as it is not regarded as safe for continued operations under normal speed.

The lines at Platforms 1 and 2 at  Bellville Station belong to TFR while all the other lines belong  to PRASA Metrorail.

The Improvement Directives are issued under Section 36 of the National Railway Safety Regulator Act, 2002 (Act 16, 2002 as amended).  The RSR will scrutinise the corrective action project plan and if found to be appropriate and sufficient, RSR will monitor the refurbishment project closely until completion. Failure to comply with this directive could result in the RSR imposing penalties and closing the affected lines until the risks have been eliminated.