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But since that time patterns and requirements in the rail transport industry have changed considerably. In 1992 Intersite Property Management Services was formed to manage and develop the SA Rail Commuters’ Corporation (SARCC) property portfolio, worth some R2.6 billion.

This considerable task was undertaken with flair and enthusiasm, and today it is beyond argument that most of the unused railway land throughout the country has been put to good and imaginative use. This has been done not merely to provide the SARCC with a good financial return, but also to serve the needs of the broader community.

In fact, Intersite have fulfilled their mandate so well that they now want to put their expertise at the service of other Government departments, and do the same thing for them as they have done for the railways, and are now also doing for the National Roads Agency. "We are experts, and have a track record of 10 successful years to prove it. We are specialists, while other Government departments are still carrying on in the orthodox way, doing something that is not part of their core business, with less sophisticated tools ," says Mthura Swartz, executive manager of Intersite in the Western and Eastern Cape.

"It’s almost like driving around town in a small 8-year old car when you have a new Mercedes parked in the garage? I say they should use us, we can add so much value to their work, help to unlock land value, make money for them , and at the same time can empower the community on their behalf."

Swartz points to the Joe Gqabi interchange as one shining example of co-ordination of planning and exploitation of possible synergies between Intersite and the Unicity. This relationship can be solidified and taken even further, he contends. Exploratory talks are on going between Intersite and the provincial DoPW.

Intersite’s task on behalf of the SARCC and the Government , he explains, was three-fold:

· First, they had to increase revenue on the property portfolio, and in the process enable Government to reduce spending on subsidising the railways,.

· Secondly, they had to enhance the commuting experience of millions of daily train passengers, including upgrading of stations and providing a safe and clean environment, at the same time providing facilities at stations such as shops, dry cleaners, hairdressers and other amenities,

· And thirdly, they had to assist the SARCC in creating inter-modal transport hubs at railway stations."

Two recent examples of their work have been the creation of much-needed housing, factories and shops around Retreat station, which brought the whole area to life and created jobs and amenities there - and the creation of the Joe Gqabi station in Phillipi, the first new station built by Intersite on behalf of the SARCC since 1999, completed at a cost of R28 million. According to Swartz, a large portion of the budget was spent empowering previously disadvantaged persons. Most of the contractors and sub-contractors, for example, were either partly or largely owned by Black South Africans, and most of the materials for the construction process were sourced from ‘the emerging market’. The station forms part of the larger integrated Joe Gqabi interchange, incorporating taxis, commuter and distance trains, buses and long-distance coaches. The station is user-friendly, boasts full CCTV, a new PA system and display boards, and has the first operational lift at any station in the Western Cape. Intersite has innovative financial, property, geographic information and asset management solutions in place, and can offer:

• Asset management
• Property and portfolio management
• Property development and project management
• Facilities and centre management
• Strategic and business planning consulting
• Land and asset register establishment
• Policy formulation
• E-Commerce property transactions.

A new and exciting development, which has proved successful, is the first South African internet based on-line auction system, developed for selling state-owned properties once they have been rezoned by Intersite.

Intersite also has a unique land asset management system called Interland, developed during the past eight years, that has grown into a powerful and robust management system for state-owned property portfolios. It uses state of the art Global Positioning Information Systems (GPIS) and is designed for the real-time demands of effectively managing complex property portfolios.