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The Vryheid (Natal) Railway Coal and Iron Company, having entered into an agreement with the late Natal Government to construct a railway to open up its properties beyond Vryheid, commenced the construction of the railway so far as Hlobane in March, 1908. The railway was officially opened by the Governor of Natal on 1st April, 1 909.

The line, which is 17i miles in length, is a continuation of the Glencoe- Vryheid Section, but is a considerable advance in grades, curves, and weight of rails.

The Extension is of considerable importance to this portion of the country, and is of no little value to the South African Railways. The Glencoe- Vryheid Section, which before the operation of this Company had always entailed a seriously heavy working loss, having since the addition of the Company's traffic completely overtaken working expenses, and contributing for the first time in its history to interest on capital.

The line is worked as a part of the South African Railways System, and will soon form an important link in railway development in the direction of the Transvaal and Swazi borders, whilst it has quite recently been arranged for an extension of another six or seven miles to be immediately undertaken in the direction of Louwsberg.

The traffic derived from the mine has already exceeded 10,000 tons of coal per month, and is increasing month by month in dimensions.

If in addition to minerals for which the line was originally built there should, as is hoped in some quarters, develop a valuable Pongola Goldfield, which the remarkable success of one mine in that locality seems to render not improbable, this section of the country will become increasingly important to the Province.

The Utrecht Railway

The Utrecht Railway was opened on the 25th April, 1910. It joins the main line about three miles south of Newcastle. There is no station at that point, as all passenger trains run to Newcastle, which is practically the junction.

The line has been built by the Utrecht Collieries Company, primarily as a coal line, at a cost of £100,000. The length of the line from the junction to Utrecht station is 24i miles, and to the terminus at the mine 26 miles.

The line runs through flat country, consequently the grades and curves are easy. The sharpest curves have a radius of 740 feet, but there are only four of these —955 feet being the average limit. The result is that at a speed of 25 miles an hour the effects of curvature is not felt by passengers. Grades, however, are of more importance than curves on a mineral line, and these have been kept as low as possible. The steepest grade against trains going towards Utrecht is 1 in 50, and against trains going towards Newcastle 1 in 100. The heavy traffic will, of course, be from the mine towards the main line.