It's too early to celebrate SGR, bus owners say

Trains at the Mombasa Terminus in Miritini on May 31, 2017. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • President Uhuru Kenyatta commissioned the standard gauge railway project on Wednesday and announced a Sh700 fare for economy.

  • According to some bus owners, this amount is unrealistic.

Owners and managers of bus companies in Mombasa have said it is too early for Kenyans to celebrate the new Sh327 billion Mombasa-Nairobi railway.

President Uhuru Kenyatta commissioned the project on Wednesday and announced a Sh700 fare for economy class.

Some bus owners have criticised the government for failing to consult stakeholders in the transport sector only to surprise them with a low fare that could kill their businesses.

They said the railway project was rushed through without proper supports, including a road connecting the Mombasa city centre to the Miritini railway station.

They said the fare set by the President was unrealistic and politically motivated. Bus companies charge between Sh900 and Sh2,500 for the Mombasa-Nairobi journey.

Mombasa Raha and Buscar director Abubakar Said said bus owners were surprised when the President announced the Sh700 fare for economy class, and not Sh900 as earlier suggested.

“The President should have considered us because we have invested heavily in the transport sector. It will really affect us, we will definitely run out of business,” he said.

Mash East Africa general manager Lenox Shallo said the new railway passenger service is an alternative means that will serve its own type of clientele.

“It is a situation of wait and see. As passenger transporters, we cannot predict what will happen to us,” said Mr Shallo.

He said the Sh700 fare will depend on the capacity of the new rail service, but added that the service will affect bus companies.