Dear Gautie News subscriber,

Have you read the latest Tell-a-Tale chapter on the Kids Station website?

Click on Chapter 17 and read about the relocation of Vaali, the Thick-Toed Gecko. You can also go to the Study Buddy link and learn how Gautrain cares for the environment.

Click here now to visit the Gautrain Kids Website.

Gautrain’s rail route will pass through part of the Salvokop Nature Reserve, as well as other pristine (= in its original condition, unspoilt) natural areas in Esther Park, Snake Valley and Midrand (near the Mint). Small animals, insects and plants have made these areas their home – and the Gautrain team was worried about what would happen to them when construction work began.

They decided to hold Search and Rescue exercises in each of these areas. Various conservation experts were asked to help spot indigenous (= living naturally in a place) animals, insects and plants and to collect them, so that they could be moved to safe new homes in nature reserves, gardens and nurseries. Sangomas (= traditional healers) helped with this, because they know which plants are used for traditional medicines.

They were helped by herpetologists (= experts who know all about reptiles) who took care of animals such as snakes, lizards and tortoises.

In South Africa, not many women work in the construction industry. This could soon change, as the Gautrain project is helping women to learn about various jobs that are useful on construction sites.

Training is given to women who did not have jobs before. They first spend some time learning in the classroom before beginning practical (= doing the real thing) on-the-job training at various construction sites. Experienced coaches will teach them all the skills they need to do their jobs properly, and after 16 months of training they will be fully qualified.

Learnerships cover jobs such as blasting (= blowing up rock and earth), electrical engineering (= designing and putting together wiring, lights, power points, etc) , road works, fitting and turning (making parts and tools out of metal), business administration (= looking after the day-to-day running of a business or organisation) and working on diesel engines. There are 64 women taking part in these learnerships, as well as 10 students studying for BBA degrees and another 44 learners busy with courses in construction and civil engineering. By the time Gautrain begins to run in 2010, the South African construction industry will certainly not be a “man’s world” any more!

Tunnel building has a long history and tunnel workers have their own traditions (= something that people have been doing for so long that it has taken on a special meaning for them). Tunnel builders in Europe, especially those who belong to the Roman Catholic faith, believe that Saint Barbara takes care of them while they are tunnelling. It has become a tradition for a statue or image of Saint Barbara to be placed in a tunnel or at its entrance, to ask for her blessing and protection.

Some of the engineers working for the Bombela consortium (= group of companies) come from France, and they brought a statue of Saint Barbara with them when they came to South Africa. The statue was placed in a small shrine (= holy place) at the entrance to the Marlboro Portal, and a Roman Catholic priest from the Congo was invited to perform a blessing ceremony. Saint Barbara will also be asked to protect the workers when tunnelling begins at Park Station, Rosebank and Mushroom Farm Park. The 4th of December is Saint Barbara’s feast day, and the French workers will celebrate the occasion with a special meal and a blessing ceremony.

Another tunnelling tradition says that the tunnel workers must have a godmother. She makes sure that the workers are properly looked after – and also visits the tunnel from time to time to bring them treats. A godmother will be given this important job when the Tunnel Boring Machine begins digging the Rosebank section of the tunnel in January 2008.

The construction (= building or putting something together) of the Gautrain project can be difficult to follow. The construction teams do not build a project like this by starting at one end and working towards the other. Instead, work begins at various points along the route – and eventually the teams meet up. To give you an idea of the progress (= how far something has got) of the project, we have put together a list of the construction sites and what has happened up to now. To make it easier to understand where the various construction sites can be found, click here for a link to the route map. If you would like to watch a video of the latest work on the project, please click here.

At Park Station the station box is being built 25 metres underground. Large sections of rock have been found underground where the tunnel must be built – so the engineers will use drills and blast with explosives (= a special mixture that blows things apart) to break up the rock and open up a big enough hole for the tunnel. The drilling and blasting will not do any harm to people or buildings in the area.

Before work can begin on the Rosebank Station tunnel, shafts must be dug down to the right depth – and this is what is happening at Rosebank. At the Sandton Station, work has begun on the underground station and parking area for cars.

Special bridges called viaducts must be built between Marlboro Station and O R Tambo International Airport. At this stage, foundations (= a solid base) are being built for the viaducts.

From Centurion Station to Hatfield station there are geologists (= experts who know all about different types of soil and rock) who are doing tests. The construction sites have been set up and construction of foundations for viaducts will start soon.

You may have noticed that the engineers working on the Gautrain project are using a method known as “cut and cover” at quite a few places along the route.

The idea behind this construction method is to allow work to continue underground while also allowing people and traffic at street level to pass over the works without any inconvenience (= making something difficult to do).

Cut and cover works like this:

• The area where the work will be done is first fenced off. Traffic and pedestrians (= people walking) are given another route (= a diversion) to follow.
• A hole is dug in the ground, big enough for the station or underpass to fit into.
• A strong foundation and floor are laid on the bottom and walls are built on the sides, to form a big concrete box.
• The top is then covered with a concrete slab forming a “roof” strong enough to carry traffic and pedestrians.
• The safety fences are taken away, and pedestrians and traffic can pass over the slab.
• Building continues below ground in the hollow space.
  

All around us we find things that were made or built by people who lived long ago. This is part of the heritage (= important things passed down over time), which belongs to the whole nation. The Gautrain project respects our national heritage, and the route was checked for places and items that are important in the history of South Africa and its people. A list was handed over to the South African Heritage Resource Agency (SAHRA) and the Gauteng Province Heritage Resources Agency (GPHRA), because these two organisations take care of national heritage resources (= a stock or supply of something important).

After going over the list very carefully and discussing it with local communities, the people in charge had to decide which places must be preserved (= kept as they were) and which could be demolished. Let’s take a look at some of the examples:

• In Johannesburg, the old Technical College (dating back to 1910) was demolished, but historical items such as doors, iron gates and window frames were preserved.
• A shed where railway coaches were washed at the Pretoria Station in Tshwane will be renovated (= made as good as new) – and will eventually form part of the new Gautrain Pretoria Station in Tshwane.
• Part of the 1910 Rissik Station in Hatfield (a suburb in Tshwane) will be preserved. Old sculptures will be moved to the new Gautrain Hatfield Station.
• Old palm trees in Tshwane will also be preserved.

If workers find heritage items that were not known about before, construction work will stop immediately. A member of SAHRA will then come to inspect the site and decide what should be done. While digging or tunnelling they may also come across unmarked graves or buried skeletons. The South African Police Services will be called, and they will try to find out who was buried there – and if they have any living family.

October will be Public Transport Month in Gauteng, and the Gauteng Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works is holding a competition for all grade 0 to grade 7 learners in the province.

Learners can draw or paint pictures, and write essays or poems about safe public transport for kids. There are three categories – grades 0 to 3 are in the first category, grades 4 and 5 in the second, and grades 6 and 7 in the third.

Watch this space for more details about the competition. We will provide more information shortly.