The United National Transport Union (Untu) has slammed the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) and Metrorail over ongoing infrastructural problems.

Angry Metrorail commuters set fire to train carriages, attacked shops and overturned vehicles in Cape Town’s main train station after hours of delays to services.

Eight carriages were set alight at the station on Monday night, the train operator Metrorail said. Video posted on social media showed carriages engulfed in flames, and smoke from the fires was visible from across the city.

One person has been arrested in connection with the violence.

Metrorail regional manager Richard Walker apologised for the delays, which have been attributed to an overloaded electrical supply system, and a problem with electrical feeds,

“We acknowledge that commuters have legitimate service concerns but we can never condone criminality,” he said in a statement.

The rail operator has condemned the violence and says it intends opening cases of malicious damage to property.

The transport union’s Steve Harris says, “Government needs to bail them. We’ve bailed South African Airways on numerous occasion. At times, the government goes to the purse and bails Prasa as well under the circumstances, because this is for the poorest of the poor and these are people that have no alternatives.”