Kenya says railway line connecting industrial park to be completed by June

The construction of a meter-gauge railway line from Mai Mahiu Industrial Park to Longonot town in north-western Kenyan county of Nakuru will be completed in June, three months ahead of schedule, officials said on Tuesday.

James Macharia, cabinet secretary for transport and infrastructure said completion of the railway line will pave way for the collection of goods from the nearby inland container depot for onwards transportation to neighboring countries. He said the government was keen to commence the transportation of containers from the inland container depot using the upgraded railway line. Macharia said the meter-gauge railway will fast-track the transportation of cargo within the region, adding that the rehabilitation of the one extending to the Ugandan border route will be completed by September.

According to Macharia, the passenger train which is not currently in use will be reactivated, to ferry commuters to the border town of Malaba in western Kenya.

Macharia said the government was banking on infrastructural development to spur economic growth.