The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, the Garden Route’s iconic steam train that once operated between Knysna and George, may be resurrected if talks between private-sector interests and Transnet bear fruit.
Mike Asefovitz, Senior Manager: External Communications for Transnet Freight Rail, recently confirmed dialogue, saying: “There are indeed discussions around the future of the line with interested parties but it is still in discussion phase with nothing concrete tabled.”
A recent article on Tourism Update on the possible relaunch of the Eastern Cape’s Apple Express, elicited requests from readers for information on the much-loved Choo-Tjoe, once a premier attraction for the Western Cape. Its 67km route along the coast afforded scenic viewing of indigenous forest and inland lakes. The historic line first came into service in 1928.
According to Friends of the Choo-Tjoe, a non-profit organisation formed in August 2010 to promote the rehabilitation of the railway line, the service was suspended eight years ago due to massive storm damage to the line infrastructure.
The organisation’s website (http://www.friendsofthechoo-tjoe.co.za) states that in 2012, Transnet advised that the cost of reopening the line and returning the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe to the tracks was in the order of R250 million, finance that Transnet could not allocate unless freight could be conveyed on the line.
In February 2012, interest was shown by a Dutch group involved with preservation in Holland and operation of Museum Stoomtram Hoorn-Medemblik, which incorporates a heritage railway.