President Ruto set to commission Sh4.2 billion Mombasa commuter rail on Wednesday this week
President William Ruto will on Wednesday this week commission the Mombasa Commuter Rail Service at a cost of Sh4.2billion.
The Sh4.2 billion project included the construction of modern passenger stations in Mombasa town and Miritini, the building of a 2.3-kilometre railway bridge across the Makupa Creek, and the rehabilitation of 16.6 kilometers of the existing Metre Gauge Railway (MGR) line.
The announcement was made by the Kenya Railway Corporation (KRC).
In their notice, KRC has stated that the journey to the Mombasa Central Business District (CBD) is expected to take minutes from the Miritini SGR station and not hours as it has previously been.
“What if getting from the Mombasa Terminus to Mombasa CBD was simple? What if the journey took minutes, not hours? What if the train did the work for you? On Wednesday, those what ifs become reality as the Mombasa Commuter Rail Service is set to be officially commissioned by President William Ruto. Mombasa is about to move differently,” KRC has announced.
The Corporation recently announced the completion of the construction works that has been ongoing to extend railway services to the coastal City CBD.
The commuter service will now facilitate seamless connectivity for passengers traveling to and from Nairobi via the Madaraka Express Passenger Service, as well as serve residents of Shimanzi, Mazeras, Changamwe, and other communities situated along the corridor in their daily movement.
According to Kenya Railways, the service is projected to transport approximately 4,000 commuters daily.
The commuter service also features a “Park and Ride” option, where customers can park their vehicles and ride the train, and the “Drop and Ride” option, where public service vehicles can drop off and pick up customers.
The project, which began in September 2022, stalled midway due to land acquisition challenges.
However, the government, through the Ministry of Transport, allocated Sh1.1billion to the National Land Commission (NLC) to compensate affected landowners before the project resumed.
