action.
The tests were introduced in line with recommendations made by a commission of inquiry into the cause of a head-on collision between a passenger and a goods train at Dibangombe siding in Victoria Falls on August 27, which claimed eight lives and injured 34 other passengers.
Mahlangu said: “The truth of the matter is that train drivers are not happy with this move. The findings of the commission should first of all be made public, otherwise what it means is that all recent NRZ accidents were a result of driving under the influence of alcohol.”
In realiy, accidents were mainly a result of obsolete communication signals and the general poor condition of the country’s rail system.
In the last session of Parliament, a portfolio committee on transport and communications in its report said the country’s rail network laid in the 1890s had outlived its lifespan. The committee added that the rail infrastructure, especially signal equipment, had fallen prey to vandals, resulting in communication problems between controllers and enginemen. – Own correspondent
19.10.2006
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Transport crisis worsens
BULAWAYO - Train drivers have embarked on a go-slow to protest a decision by the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) to introduce compulsory breath tests in a bid to curb driving under the influence of alcohol. President of the Enginemen Association of Zimbabwe Abel Mahlangu confirmed the industrial