The Outeniqua Choo Tjoe & Rail to Trail

I had the privilege of enjoying the Outenique Choo-Tjoe steam train trip from Knysna to George and back in the late 90s. Make no mistake, I would love to see the train running again. However, the fact is the line was closed after massive floods caused damage to the line at Wilderness in 2006 and despite repeated rumours over the last 10 years that the train is going to run again, nothing has materialised.

1. The state of the George—Knysna railway
2. Rumours, “Alan McVitty” and “Classic Rail”
3. Alternative uses

The state of the George—Knysna railway

Photos of the track dating back to 2016 show erosion of the rail reserve, rotten and missing sleepers, as well as mature trees growing next to and between the rails. The state of the rails, sleepers and the rail reserve in general continues to disintegrate.

1. The railway line is in a terrible condition. Aside from the major landslide covering the tracks in Wilderness, the line itself has not been maintained since 2006, and where wooden sleepers are still in place, many of these have rotted away (some completely) or have been stolen, major erosion affects large sections of the line, in places leaving the line suspended in mid-air, in others trees are growing between the tracks and sleepers as well as alongside the tracks in the rail reserve, damaging sleepers and displacing rails.
2. I find it hard to believe that the many bridges along the route are structurally sound after so many years without maintenance.
3. Ecologically, the idea of a (fossil-fueled) steam train is horrific, and at least trams (electric) should be used, which would require the electrification of the line.
4. The steam train was also responsible for sparking numerous fires along the route. Considering the fire risk in the area and the experience of the Knysna Fires of 2017, this is a very real concern.
5. Financially, the line ran at a massive loss. Given more pressing portfolios like housing, it seems unlikely that vast sums of money will be given to the upgrade and to subsidise the running of the service. There is no real need for a freight service on this route (it was never a main line, stopping in Knysna)

Rumours, “Alan McVitty” and “Classic Rail”

This is in no way intended as a personal attack; the following are simply observations from following this matter since before 2016 and attempting to gain clarity on the latter through some Googling. If you take some time to Google, you will see that ALL articles point back to one single source, the mysterious “Alan McVitty” of (the equally mysterious) “Classic Rail”. Alan, if you are reading this, I would LOVE to hear from you!

Rumours

Who is Alan McVitty?

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alan-mcvitty-68716762/

What is “Classic Rail”?

A search for the name leads to the same articles and a website https://www.outeniquachootjoe.com/, which, to be honest, looks like a hobbyist’s blog project. ^[1] Compare it to https://rovos.com/ and even https://www.powervan.co.za/; if you told me either was behind this project, I would be more convinced. The website lists no company details, physical address, postal address, or other verifiable information. The Outeniqua Choo Tjoe website describes “Classic Rail” as a “private consortium”. ^[2]

Much of the Outeniqua Choo Tjoe website is outdated. The “media spokesperson” is listed as Martin Hatchuel. ^[3] I have reached out to him for comment.

Alternative uses

While Facebook groups like the “Friends of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe” continue to hold onto the romantic notion that the railway line can be made operational again, it is fairly obvious that this is not financially viable.

Some would prefer it to be converted to other uses. To this end, I created the Facebook group Rail to Trail to slowly grow the idea of turning the route into a cycle/hiking/walking trail. Similarly, the Outeniqua Cycleway initiative seeks to go one (or more!) steps further in linking this section to Plettenberg Bay and eventually to Gqeberha, establishing a grand route stretching from Cape Town to Gqeberha.

http://www.cxpress.co.za/editors-desk/george-knysna-railway-why-how-and-what-if/

https://showme.co.za/knysna/news/decision-on-choo-tjoe-overdue/

Outeniqua Cycleway

References:

1. Outeniqua Choo Tjoe (no date) Home. Available at: https://www.outeniquachootjoe.com/ (Accessed: 11 October 2025).
2. Outeniqua Choo Tjoe (2016) Line repair update 29 August 2016. Available at: https://www.outeniquachootjoe.com/blog/post/line-repair-update-29-august-2016/ (Accessed: 11 October 2025).
3. Outeniqua Choo Tjoe (no date) Contact & Enquiries. Available at: https://www.outeniquachootjoe.com/contact/contact-and-enquiries/ (Accessed: 11 October 2025).