Next Generation Logistics Gateway – A gateway to the future
Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest intermodal terminal is coming to Gauteng.
Tambo Springs Logistics Gateway will be equipped to meet all your manufacturing, warehousing and distribution needs and will double current freight logistics capacity in and out of Gauteng. This inland intermodal port is a 607 ha industrial development, strategically located on the southern border of the Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni metropolis – and is directly connected by road and rail between Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni, Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Ngqura.
The Tambo Springs Logistics Gateway is set to change Gauteng’s transport, logistics and warehousing scene for good.
Upon taking up the reins to our nation’s highest office, President Cyril Ramaphosa earmarked infrastructure development – through planning, investing in and rolling out bankable projects – as being among the biggest drivers of growth for the South African economy. And while a lot has changed in the last year or so, with the unfolding global Covid-19 pandemic, the importance of infrastructure-led growth is even greater now than before.
History has shown that massive economic downturns are not miraculously reversed by simple austerity measures but require forward-thinking projects with a cohesive vision that create employment and facilitate trade. This is why massive developments such as the Tambo Springs Logistics Gateway are key in the recovery and rejuvenation of our economy.
What is Tambo Springs?
The 607 hectare Tambo Springs industrial development is located in the southern region of Ekurhuleni and lies along the road freight and rail corridor that links Johannesburg, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. Combining all facets of warehousing, distribution and operational efficiencies, this next-generation inland port is set to double the current freight logistics capacity heading into and out of Gauteng. Tambo Springs is an approved Presidential Strategic Infrastructure Project.
Businesses with operations at Tambo Springs will benefit hugely, as part of it is a nationally identified Special Economic Zone (SEZ), with the planned Intermodal Rail Terminal set to drastically enhance this world-class rail and road inland port’s capabilities. Along with customs clearance and the myriad SEZ perks, Tambo Springs will provide the perfect next-generation intermodal platform to move freight from port to rail, road or air, and then warehousing and, finally, the end consumer. Whatever the manufacturing or distribution needs, the privately run Tambo Springs will be well equipped to meet them, while also eradicating congestion on the national road network.
With much of sub-Saharan Africa developing at an accelerated pace, and intracontinental trade becoming a key part of our continent’s destiny, Tambo Springs is set to be a springboard from which future rail networks move goods into, out of and across Africa.
Working Together
Both the City of Ekurhuleni and the Office of the Presidency have in recent years extolled the virtues of the public and private sectors working together, particularly in the form of public-private partnerships, which leverage the capabilities of both sectors to have an exponentially greater socio-economic impact than government or business could on their own.
As a key partner in the Tambo Springs development, the City of Ekurhuleni commenced with the rolling out of bulk infrastructure services in 2020. This vital infrastructure is valued at around R280 million. The capital commitment by the City has served as the spark for the development of this project.
On a provincial level, the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has committed over R370 million in capital spend towards the adjacent road infrastructure, which will include a new interchange to link Tambo Springs to the N3 National Route. News on the commencement of its construction is expected soon, following a successful tender process. As a further boon to the development, the department is planning on building the first highway in Gauteng in more than 40 years, which, among others, is planned to link Tambo Springs to Africa’s busiest airport, O.R. Tambo International Airport.
In looking to further improve regional and national freight capabilities, Transnet Freight Rail has been involved in strategic discussions with the Tambo Springs developer since as early as 2009. Agreements were reached with Transnet Freight Rail in 2016 to build and operate a R2.5 billion freight rail terminal as part of the National Transportation Strategy Framework.
Beyond the immediate commercial benefits of this development are the employment opportunities it affords to the people of South Africa. Not merely limited to impacting the immediate surrounding communities, Tambo Springs has been projected to create 283 000 jobs for people across Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.
Original Article: The Ekurhuleni