Alberton train station left unguarded for two decades as illegal occupants return

The informal settlement located near the train station in Alberton North. Picture: Supplied The Alberton train station has had no security presence for more than two decades. Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy confirmed to Parliament that there have not been any security officers at the station since train services in the area were terminated.

The absence of any protective measures has left the station vulnerable to illegal occupation and criminal activity, a reality that DA MP Tsholofelo Bodlani brought to the minister’s attention through a parliamentary question. Creecy acknowledged the gap plainly, stating that her department’s Protection Services “has not deployed security officers in the area concerned since 2003/4.” The lack of oversight raises broader concerns about how Prasa manages dormant infrastructure across its network, particularly in communities where rail services have long since disappeared but the physical assets remain. Prasa did attempt to address the illegal occupation once before.

Creecy told Parliament that the agency “obtained an eviction order around 2013 and executed it successfully by removing the illegal occupants. Within the same year the eviction was carried out, illegal occupants had returned and reclaimed the land around the station. The cycle of occupation, eviction and re-occupation points to a deeper challenge: without an active security presence or a concrete plan to use the land, cleared sites quickly become targets again. Prasa is now weighing its legal options, with Creecy indicating the agency “is considering applying for another eviction based on future possible station revitalisation.”