Kenya Railways acquires 7 more trains for Nairobi-Kisumu route

Kenya Railways is set to add seven additional trains to the Nairobi-Kisumu route in a bid to meet the growing demand for services on the circuit.

The company is likewise looking to increase the frequency of trips on the route from one per week to three and extend its services to Butere. The Butere route is 90 percent complete according to Kenya Railways.

The locomotives, whose buying price is yet to be established, are expected in the country by the end of March.

“The seven-passenger locomotives that we have procured from China are almost complete and we shall receive them by the end of March and we intend to start using them in April,” Kenya railways regional manager for Kisumu Michael Disi is quoted as saying by the Business Daily.

“The purchase of the locomotives has been necessitated by the demonstrated increase of passengers from the two regions who are willing to use the railway line.”

An increase in the number of trains, Disi added, will make travel convenient for persons plying the route while augmenting various economic sectors in the region.   

“We shall be having two trains on the line, when one is departing Nairobi, another one is leaving Kisumu. These trains will ensure that passengers can travel at night from Kisumu to Nairobi and return in the evening after finishing their business,” said Disi.

The Nairobi-Kisumu train services were reinstated in December 2021, after a decade-long hiatus owing to a dilapidated railway line. Commuters travelling from Nairobi to Kisumu pay Ksh. 600 for second class coaches while first-class coaches set back users Ksh. 2,000 each.