Transport News
United Airlines gets OK from US authorities for new Washington DC – Cape Town route
Major US carrier United Airlines has been granted official US permission to operate three direct flights a week between the US capital, Washington DC, and Cape Town in South Africa. Provided that the South African government agrees, the new route will start operating on November 17 this year. “We are thrilled to further expand our Africa offering with this first-ever direct link between Washington DC and Cape Town,” affirmed United Airlines senior VP: Global Network Planning and Alliances Patrick Quayle. “These new flights build upon our existing year-round New York/Newark to Cape Town service – together they’ll provide a near-daily pattern from the US to Cape Town along with connectivity to broader region through our Airlink partnership.”
Delta announces non-stop Cape Town to Atlanta and boost South African network
US airline Delta is adding a nonstop flight from Cape Town to Atlanta from December 18, to complement its existing service between Johannesburg and Atlanta, and the new flight will operate three times a week and provide more than 200 onward connections across the US and beyond. Delta’s new Cape Town flight will operate using the airline’s new, state-of-the-art Airbus A350-900 aircraft featuring all four Delta cabin experiences – Delta One, Delta Premium Select, Delta Comfort+ and Main Cabin.
Rhenus Logistics Introduces Carbon Neutral Air Consolidation Service from Frankfurt to São Paulo
Rhenus Logistics is introducing a carbon-neutral air freight option as part of the sustainable initiatives offering customers a carbon-neutral consolidation service from Frankfurt, Germany (FRA) to São Paulo, Brazil (SAO).
Alliance Shippers Inc. Enhanced Service
Alliance Critical Capacity and Highway Services Division Are Becoming One
Maritime operators adjust to uncertainty as capacity/pricing pendulum starts to shift
Containership lines racked up record profits in 2021. Entering the second half of 2022, protecting those margins is job one, but as demand eases, a softer market may have other ideas. For the nation’s ports, congestion once again may raise its ugly head as the 2022 peak season swings into full gear.
Association to host conference
The South African Heavy Haul Association (SAHHA) is hosting its conference from August 2 to 4 at Emperor’s Palace, in Kempton Park, Gauteng. This year’s conference theme: ‘Safe, resilient and efficient heavy haul’, was prompted by the challenges the rail network system is facing. These challenges are impacting on the predictability and safety of rail services.
S Africa hampered by rolling stock challenges
South Africa is facing challenges regarding its rolling stock, owing to rail networks being vandalised during Covid-19 lockdowns, and this will be costly to repair, says consultant and supplier of new and used locomotives African Railway Systems COO Dylan Knott. The shortage of locomotives and rolling stock also prevents the full use of South Africa’s rail system, and while State-owned utility Transnet Freight Rail has started making its rail network accessible for private operators, the challenges remain, he notes.
Industry body partners with department
The African Rail Industry Association (ARIA) is working together with the Department of Transport (DoT) and other bodies to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will formally recognise ARIA as its official partner in advocacy on behalf of the rail industry. The association currently has an MoU with the Railway Safety Regulator, which is provided for by the National Railway Safety Regulator Act.
Avnet to Distribute LeddarTech LiDAR Sensors and Modules in the Americas
Leading global technology solutions provider Avnet (Nasdaq: AVT) will now be distributing products from LeddarTech, a leader in environmental sensing solutions for autonomous vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems.
IndiCap Announces Next Major Metro Phoenix Development: Virgin Industrial Park
Metro Phoenix West Valley project will total more than 1.5 million square feet of Class A space in two phases, bringing IndiCap’s local industrial development pipeline to more than 14.4 million square feet and over 880 acres.
Nolan Transportation Group and Flexport Launch Strategic Partnership
The partnership will offer greater visibility and control for global consignees along with a seamless, tech-enabled customer experience
Gibela unveils its one-hundredth train set Gibela chairperson Irene Charnley, Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa chairperson Leonard Ramatlakane and Gauteng Premier David Makhura address media and dignitaries during the celebration of the one-hundredth X’trapolis Mega train
Earlier this month, train manufacturer Gibela celebrated the high-profile handover ceremony of its one-hundredth train set to the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) in Dunnottar, Ekurhuleni. The event was attended by Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula, Gauteng Premier David Makhura, PRASA board chairperson Leonard Ramatlakane and other dignitaries in the transport and rail industries.
Rail revitalisation needed
Revitalising South Africa’s rail infrastructure is necessary to ensure that it is a reliable, available, competitive and efficient mode of transport, allowing users to capitalise on the sector’s being safer, more reliable and low carbon emitting, says rolling stock manufacturing company Alstom business development director Makgola Makololo. She says South Africa has a well-developed rail network in the region and progress is being made to improve the local rail industry, adding that continued investment and execution of key rail infrastructure projects is vital.
Cape Town pursues reinstatement of joint rail enforcement unit
The City of Cape Town says it is keen to help revive the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) rail enforcement unit (REU), which operated as a three-way government partnership between October 2018 and July 2020. The REU was launched by then Minister of Transport Blade Nzimande at a cost of R48-million.
Retailer’s last-mile deliveries to be made by solar-charged electric panel vans
Retailer Woolworths in June announced that it will start rolling out electric panel vans (EPVs) in partnership with logistics group DSV and mobility specialist Everlectric to deliver its customers’ online purchases in Gauteng, Cape Town and Durban. This follows a ten-month trail period during which Woolworths put two Maxus EPVs from Chinese manufacturer SAIC through their paces for its last-mile deliveries.
Sanral upgrading the N2 from KwaMashu to Umdloti
Traffic on the N2 between the KwaMashu interchange and Umdloti bridge will be disrupted over the next two months to bring in and place concrete barriers alongside the median to protect workers building a median barrier wall and additional lanes, the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) says. “The work being done here is part of the major upgrades on the N2 and N3. On the northbound carriageway, the road widths have already been narrowed, up as far as the on- and off-ramps of the Mount Edgecombe interchange,” says Sanral Eastern Region project manager Trevor Zumani.
Volkswagen tops used-car sales survey
According to a report carried out over six months by used car sales and buying service WeBuyCars, German motor vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen ranked as South Africa’s most sought-after used car brand among buyers between October 2021 and April 2022. The report released in May, was conducted on the company’s social media platforms, and revealed the Volkswagen Polo topped the list for the most frequently asked for car, while the company’s sales statistics showed it was also the most sold car for the same period.
Auto centre lauds R9.1bn injection into Eastern Cape ports
The Automotive Industry Development Centre Eastern Cape (AIDC EC) says it applauds Transnet National Port Authority’s (TNPA’s) announcement that it will inject R9.1-billion into its three Eastern Cape ports over the next seven years. AIDC EC CEO Thabo Shenxane says the centre, as well as other provincial stakeholders, have all been lobbying for the investment as part of an effort to grow the region’s automotive sector.
AFS Logistics introduces new integrated technology platform to improve service
The AFSmart technology suite offers shippers and carriers fast, easy access to critical data for more informed management decisions
Rajant Achieves Certification for Komatsu’s FrontRunner Autonomous Haulage Solution (AHS)
Validation for Autonomous Hauling Completed with Rajant in Just Six Months