Public transport is widely available in South Africa, however the quality and reliability has not always met the required standard. At the time of project development, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa through Metrorail (the South African operator of commuter rail services) delivered over one million trips per day during 2006 and all major cities had bus services. However, the challenge was that the coverage of the public transport system did not keep pace with urban development and quality of services suffered as a result of under-investment. The government, therefore, identified the need to ease traffic congestion within the Johannesburg-Tshwane corridor, which would allow for the provision of efficient transportation and facilitate movement of people. At the time, the upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup added time pressure to have a reliable transport system in place in Gauteng.

There was significant concurrent activity in the construction market during the construction phase of the project, with a range of other major construction projects underway in preparation for the FIFA World Cup. Five stadia were built for the games, in addition to other transport and infrastructure developments to accommodate the mass inflow of people. This increased demand created a major shortage of skills, materials, and equipment during the time of construction of the project.