Government and Policy

SGR Lays Down Measures For Smooth Operations

BY Jane Muia · December 19, 2022 11:12 am

KEY POINTS

The SGR has recently become the preferred mode of transport to the coast owing to its efficiency. It offers cheap tickets at 1,000 shillings for the economy and 3,000 shillings for first class.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The Madaraka Expressed moved a total of 73,705 passengers between December 1 and December 10, pointing out the great interest it has generated among commuters. Out of the total passengers, 64,274 passengers were on Phase I of the SGR while 9, 431 were on Phase IIA.

The Kenya Railways Corporation has put in place adequate measures to ensure a smooth movement of both passengers and cargo over the festive season.

Passengers ferrying to the Coastal region will use the three sets of Madaraka Express which will be fully operational during the festive season.

The Madaraka Express Freight Service is also supplying adequate wagons for both container and conventional cargo evacuations for imports and return exports.

The SGR has recently become the preferred mode of transport to the coast owing to its efficiency. It offers cheap tickets at 1,000 shillings for the economy and 3,000 shillings for first class. Children below three years are not charged any fee to take a ride on the train while those from 3-11 years pay half the price adults to pay for the economy and first-class tickets.

In a statement, Kenya Railways said more coaches are being added in response to the rising booking demand, urging passengers to book early to avoid disappointments.

Africa Star Railway Operation Company (Afristar), and Kenya Railways have reported passenger services to be above 90 percent booked with anticipation of more passengers in the coming few days.

SGR train has a capacity for 1,260 passengers with 15 economy classes and three first-class coaches. It also comes with a luggage carrier with a total capacity of 70 tonnes.

According to the Economic Survey 2022, passengers through SGR increased from 806,000 in 2020 to 1, 933,000 in 2021. This saw earnings from the Madaraka Express more than double to 2.2 billion shillings from 896 million shillings in 2020 when covid had hit the country hard, triggering travel restrictions.

Similarly, earnings on the Metre Gauge Railway (MGR) more than doubled to 234 million shillings, while those from cargo rose marginally to 1.1 billion shillings.