Moves to transform the old Grahamstown railway station into a bus terminus are still in progress following an agreement between the municipality and a number of stakeholders.
Moves to transform the old Grahamstown railway station into a bus terminus are still in progress following an agreement between the municipality and a number of stakeholders.
A recent incident again highlighted concerns about the safety of passengers: a young man standing at the informal stop in Bathurst Street earlier this month was forced to miss his bus to avoid being mugged.
Makana spokesman Mncedisi Boma said the municipality was behind the move, adding that the facility was unused and that they had at one stage considered turning it into public toilets.
Managing director of the nearby Frontier Country Hotel, Lungile Mxube, meanwhile, approached the Passenger Rail Agency with the idea of turning the railway station into a bus terminus.
He explained that there were no ablution facilities or waiting rooms for bus passengers, they rely on the privately owned Frontier Hotel for ablution facilities and have been using the hotel's veranda as a waiting area.
Boma said there were municipal funds set aside to renovate the station, but he could not confirm the amount.
The project will involve a number of departments including the infrastructure directorate, town planning, the traffic department, local economic development and other strategic partners such as the department of labour.
Major bus companies had already pledged their support to the project, Boma said. Responding to questions about this month's near mugging, police spokesperson Brigadier Marinda Mills said the man did the right thing by moving out of a potentially dangerous situation.
Mills advised passengers to call the police or at least make the local police station aware of such situations. The allocation of a building, or proper bus sheds for passengers is a valid point and the local station commander will be made aware of this situation and be requested to take it up with local authorities, she said in an emailed response to questions from Grocott's Mail this week.
Mills said regular patrols would be conducted and police officers alerted to the situation.
