An overview of the built heritage of the former Netherlands South African Railways Company (NZASM) has been published after an intensive year of research, which saw the researchers travel many thousands of kilometers along the backloads of South Africa. The NZASM was a Dutch company that constructed and operated railway lines in the former Transvaal Republic during 1887–1902.

The groundbreaking publication ‘NZASM Footsteps Along the Tracks’ was handed over by the Dutch Deputy Ambassador to South Africa, Mr Jan Heuskens, to Mr Elvin Harris of Transnet Freight Rail on 12 July.

Nicholas Clarke and Roger Fisher, assisted by Siphiwe Simelane at the Department of Architecture undertook the project. It was managed by Enterprises at the University of Pretoria and was co-funded by the Royal Netherlands Embassy. It and all databases regarding extant NZASM build heritage in South Africa can downloaded for free from: 

http://hdl.handle.net/2263/57875

The ‘NZASM Footsteps Along the Tracks’ cover. 

Mr Jan Heuskens, Deputy Ambassador to South Africa, Mr Elvin Harris of Transnet Freight Rail and Prof Jan Eloff of the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and IT at the University of Pretoria

Mr Nicholas Clarke handing over a copy of the publication to Mr Benjamin Moduko of the Mpumalanga Provincial Heritage Resources Authority

Middelburg Station, South Africa