What Cape Town's rail commuters ask
Every question a rider asks PRASA ai is a signal. Here they are, anonymised and grouped. Questions are not journeys: these figures count what riders ask, not how many people travel.
- Snapshot
- 24 October 2026
- Period
- Since launch (March 2026); routes, stations and times over the 5 weeks to 24 Oct 2026
- Source
- Questions to PRASA ai's WhatsApp service (being phased out in favour of the app). Grouped, no counts
- Updates
- By hand for now; weekly once the public report is automated
Headline figures
- People
- 5,150+
- Running since
- March 2026
- Replies read
- 67–74%
Have used PRASA ai since March 2026, across all our platforms · October 2026
On WhatsApp in Cape Town, now a free app
Weekly, Sep–Oct 2026 · a lower bound
Weekly active users and growth are shared on request. Ask us.
Where riders want to go
From "how do I get from X to Y" questions, 5 weeks to 24 Oct 2026.
Most-asked routes
Ranked; both directions combined unless shown
Where they start
Share of station questions, as the departure
Where they're going
Share of station questions, as the destination
When riders ask
Busiest from 08:00 to 11:00, with a second rise around 18:00. Mondays are busiest and Sundays quiet.
By hour
Route questions, busiest hour = 100
By day
Route questions, busiest day = 100
Languages
The language riders chat in, all users
Coming with the weekly report
- Answers rated useful: how riders rate PRASA ai's answers (about us, not the train service).
- Where an official update would help most: stations and times with the most "is my train coming?" questions.
- Rider reports by line: on time, late, not running, attributed to riders.
Groups of fewer than 10 riders are never shown. Lines appear in network order, never ranked by result.
Need more detail?
For PRASA, the City, planners and press: user numbers, growth and finer breakdowns, under a data agreement where needed.