This archive report was first published on 17 December 2019.
On Tuesday, President Uhuru Kenyatta launched freight service on the standard gauge railway (SGR) from Nairobi to Naivasha, marking a significant milestone in the country's transportation infrastructure.
The new service extends SGR freight services from Mombasa to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (ICD), taking transit cargo deeper into the country's hinterland.
Importers will pay Sh60,960 for hauling a 20-foot container to the Rift Valley town from the Port of Mombasa, with cargo in a 40-foot container to Naivasha from Mombasa costing $850 for goods less than 21 tonnes and $910 for those between 21 and 30 tonnes.
The SGR cargo fees have faced opposition from importers who say it is costly to ferry goods on the line compared to doing so by road due to more time spent clearing goods at the Nairobi train depot and the need to send a truck to collect the goods from there.
"The ICD will essentially serve cargo going west of Nairobi, and our regional partners are upbeat. It perfectly fits in the infrastructure plan of the government," Transport Principal Secretary Esther Koimett told the Business Daily.
The Sh6.9 billion Suswa ICD, a few kilometres from SGR's Maai-Mahiu terminus, is intended to serve freight cargo destined for Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo via the Mombasa port.
From the ICD, the cargo will be ferried to Western Kenya and the neighbouring countries by road, but the State has plans to revamp the old metre gauge railway (MGR) line and link it to the SGR track in Naivasha.
Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said, "We shall also be introducing direct cargo trains from Mombasa to Naivasha, taking only eight hours. From Naivasha, they will be transported by road to the MGR station for onward transmission to the neighbouring countries."
