Analysis of factors undermining the reliability of permanent way infrastructure in the South African railway industry

Various factors have been highlighted as causes of reliability deficiency of Permanent way (Perway) infrastructure, globally. It however was not known as to which of these factors are prevalent in the South African railway industry. The study develops a framework for identifying and classifying causes of reliability deficiency of Perway. The research followed the exploratory sequential mixed methods; the researcher conducted a qualitative research in a form of structured interviews and used the results thereof to build a quantitative research survey. A quantitative questionnaire survey was used to solicit responses from 52 respondents, comprising mainly of engineers, project managers, and Technicians who possess vast experience in the management of Railway infrastructure. Findings reveal that Poor maintenance policies, strategies and implementations is the most pervasive factor causing reliability deficiency of railway Track in South Africa whilst Insufficient funding and Aging rail network became the second and third factors, respectively. The research also concluded that; Track components used in South Africa are as good as those used by other major railway organizations globally. The study recommended that; South African railway organizations should priorities the replacement of old infrastructure and as part of continuous improvements, realign and modernize their maintenance strategies and implementations.