Abstract Submission is Closed

Abstract Submissions is now closed. All authors were sent a notification email of the outcome of the reviews. If you have submitted an Abstract but did not yet receive a notification email, please contact the Conference Secretariat at info@sahhaconf.co.za

Accepted Oral Presentations

Authors of accepted abstracts are required to submit a Full Paper by 24 August 2026.

Please follow the guidelines in the Full Paper Template

Accepted Poster Presentations

Authors of Poster Presentations are required to draft and submit a Poster Presentation, using this Poster Template

Use of AI in Drafting Papers

Please view SAHHA’s AI Policy

The theme for this year conference is:

Integrated Heavy Haul For Sustainable Growth

Range of Sub-Themes

1.

Rolling Stock

2.

Vehicle Track Interaction Systems

3.

Track components & design

4.

Track maintenance

5.

Manufacturing

6.

Telecommunications, Trains Authorisation Systems & Conditions Assessments

7.

Electrical Systems

8.

Bridges & Culverts & Structurers

9.

Train planning & Scheduling

10.

Rail Operations Execution

11.

Network Capacity

12.

Artificial Intelligence

13.

Safety

14.

Security

15.

Sustainability

16.

Human Factors

17.

Train Loading and off Loading operations & equipment

The following information will be required when submitting an abstract:

  • Author name(s), contact details and institutions
  • Abstract title
  • Abstract body limited to 350 words
  • Brand names may not be used in abstract titles and are limited to one reference within the body

All abstracts will be reviewed by the Technical Committee. Abstracts will be accepted or rejected at the discretion of the Technical Committee.

If your abstract is accepted for an oral presentation at the conference, a full paper will be required by the deadline as indicated below.

Please Note: AI Generated Content:

Authors submitting an abstract to the 2026 South African Heavy Haul Conference must attest that the abstract is based on their original work and is not AI-generated. AI-generated abstracts will not be considered for publication. All abstracts will be tested for AI-generated content during the review process, and any submission found to contain AI-generated content will be declined.

Authors may, however, use AI tools and large language models to edit and improve the quality of writing in an abstract, provided that the abstract itself is not generated by AI.

Important Dates

Abstract Submissions Close:

08 May 2026

Authors Acceptance Notification:

22 June 2026

Publish Preliminary Programme:

09 July 2026

Full Paper Submission Deadline:

24 August 2026

Early Bird Cut-Off:

16 October 2026