Joy as Madaraka train marks first anniversary

Passengers in Thursday’s 2.30pm train from Nairobi to Mombasa could not help feeling a little special as the engine roared in readiness to leave the Syokimau station.

Cheers and ululations from observers at the station’s platform rent the air as the train accelerated.

Some passengers in the Economy Class coaches could not resist the urge to capture the moment with their phones. Even the First Class lot, often disinterested and sleepy, could not afford to just slouch on their coaches.

It was exactly a year since Madaraka Express was launched by President Uhuru Kenyatta, and various dignitaries were there to celebrate the moment.

The train coloured red, white and yellow fast gathered speed, with its coaches quickly fusing into a reddish haze. Soon it was out of eye view.

To senior Transport ministry officials, the train’s top speed of 120 kilometres per hour has been the pace of many things around Madaraka Express from the time it was launched.

SATISFACTORY PACE

The income, for instance, has been flowing in at a satisfactory pace, according to Kenya Railways.

KR’s managing director Atanas Maina said on Tuesday that the passenger service has so far made Sh1.1 billion in revenue, attributing it to consistently high booking rates.

At no given time, he said, has the booking capacity gone lower than 90 per cent.

“The overall seat occupancy is about 96.7 per cent, which I think is tremendous,” he said in an interview on Tuesday. “Once in a while, you go down to overall seat occupancy of about 90 per cent, but on the whole, the trains have been full throughout.”

Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said on Thursday that the train’s demand keeps rising.

“In terms of passengers who are using the train, already we have exceeded the 1.3 million mark. And the demand is growing,” he told journalists in his office.

Currently, there are two passenger trains plying the standard gauge railway. They make two trips from Mombasa to Nairobi per day and two in the opposite direction.

DOMESTIC TOURISTS

By Tuesday, the trains — being managed by the China Road and Bridge Corporation — had made about 1,142 trips, according to Mr Maina. Another fast-rising aspect about Madaraka Express, according to the government, is the number of domestic tourists at the Coast.

“Before the launch, hotels in Mombasa were struggling in occupancy. On average, we had like 50 per cent occupancy in Mombasa. Currently, it has gone to almost 90 per cent,” said Mr Macharia.

The way the public has taken up Madaraka Express services, according to Mr Maina, has been “surprising”. Even after fare prices rose from Sh700 to Sh1,000 in the economy class, he said there was no reduction in booking numbers.

“We didn’t think that the uptake could be as much as it has been. And we are now challenged to look at how we can bring in additional services,” said Mr Maina.

Currently, a passenger can book a train online or through dialling a code on their phone. A person can book as many as 30 days earlier.

PROPER TRAINING

Mr Maina said no Kenyan has reached the training threshold required to be in control of the trains. “A passenger train, ferrying 1,100 people, is bigger than the Boeing A380,” he said. “So, the amount of responsibility you place on that person is enormous.”

He said that until Kenyan drivers acquire the proper training, they will continue to serve as assistants to the Chinese.

“It’s only a year from the time we started. We’ll have to make sure that safety standards are maintained, timelines are kept and training is properly done,” said Mr Maina. “They’ll go through a lot of testing before they can be allowed to steer a train ferrying 1,000 people.”

While the reviews for the passenger service have been largely positive, the cargo function of the standard gauge railway, which is now entering its sixth month, has had many hiccups.

CARGO HANDLERS

In March, cargo handlers complained that the government was forcing them to use the cargo service.

Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua in a March 7 circular directed all government departments to use the cargo services offered by the standard gauge railway, which implied that truck transports would be dumped forthwith.

But the Transport ministry officials responsible say that the cargo service has been making many strides away from the public eye.

Mr Macharia said they have so far transported 25,000 containers between Nairobi and Mombasa. He described the growth of the cargo service as tremendous and exuded confidence that it would bring in the desired returns. If it goes on like that, he said, a time may come when income from cargo will be used to subsidise passenger services.