Namibia Economist (Windhoek)
Theron Kolokwe
30 October 2009
The Much — Famed Omugulu Gwo Mbashe Star(OGS) is searching for alternative routes in order to stay on track.
The Chinese-made train has been out of service since last month and according to TransNamib, it is this kind of inconsistency that forcies the parastatal to rethink the existing routes.
"TransNamib is in the process of analysing the various routes to determine which route and/or service can best apply to the utilisation of the OGS," said the parastatal's chief of corporate communications, Ailly Hangula-Paulino.
She said the numerous breakdowns are an issue of adaptation by the train to local weather conditions and the distance it constantly has to travel. She stated that the OGS has a history of mechanical problems, with its first breakdown in March 2007,resulting from gearbox problems. The new parts arrived in September 2007 but it was only up-and-running at the end of 2008.
Hangula-Paulino says "The problem is adjustment to the weather conditions. This could be one of the factors contributing to the breakdowns."
"It is not about the money," she says.
Meanwhile, a related development is that the OGS will not resume its passenger service to Ondangwa once the embargo on the Kranzberg and Tsumeb track is lifted. Hangula-Paulino said the company is in the process of considering whether to resume service on this route because of the history of breakdowns on it and the distance.
"I can not say that we will resume the regular passenger service to the north once the embargo is lifted. I do not want to give people hope where there is none".
She said repairing the Kranzberg and Tsumeb track constitutes an infrastructure project which would then be the responsibility of the Ministry of Works. The embargo on the Windhoek to Ondangwa route was imposed mid-last year when the conditions of the track between Kranzberg and Tsumeb were deemed unsafe to travel on.
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