The Southwest Florida (Sarasota) TCC Chapter’s last meeting of 2024 featured a special presentation, “The Great South African Train Robbery,” by member and train expert Tom Kennedy, a railroad consultant with experience working in 47 countries. Having lived in South Africa for 30 years, Tom shared unique insights into the theft of railway tracks, cables, and other components that rendered the railways inoperable. Factors such as canceled security contracts, the COVID-19 pandemic, and high-level corruption contributed to these thefts, leading to a sharp decline in passenger traffic from 516 million in 2015 to 15 million in 2022, with only 11 percent of Johannesburg’s trains operational post-pandemic.
Our first meeting of 2025 is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 9, at noon contact Amanda Davis (amandatd@yahoo.com) for details.
