DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIA Railways Corporation (TRC) has successfully collected revenue amounting to 30bn/- through the operations of Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from June and November this year, it has been revealed.
Chief Government Spokesperson and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports Mr Gerson Msigwa told reporters recently that TRC has recorded a great performance since it launched electric train services in June, this year.
Divulging further statistics, Mr Msigwa said within six months of operations, the new mode of transport in the country has ferried a total of 1.17 million passengers, a proof that Tanzanians, and of course foreigners, received well and are enjoying the services offered.
According to the Chief Government Spokesperson, the figure doubles the number of passengers who traveled by ordinary old Meter Gauge Railway (MGR) for the entire year.
“By the end of November, revenue collections had reached 30bn/-, and by December 11, 2024, a total of 1,174,404 passengers had travelled by the electric train between Dar es Salaam and Dodoma,” said Mr Msigwa.
He expressed that the quality of services have continued to improve, noting that SGR train now operates a total of ten trips per day , including four trips between Dar es Salaam and Dodoma and two between Dar es Salaam and Morogoro.
He said that TRC is actively working to improve services and address challenges facing passenger transport to enhance customer satisfaction with the electric train experience.
However, he noted that TRC still faces some challenges of infrastructure vandalism, such as cable theft, which have caused disruptions to the services.
“Despite this success, there have been challenges caused by a few individuals with ill intentions, such as vandalising train infrastructure and stealing cables, including cutting catenary wires that supply electricity to the trains. These actions have been causing inconvenience to passengers,” he said.
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He added: “TRC in collaboration with security agencies, has worked diligently to address this issue. Several perpetrators have been arrested, as reported by the police and legal proceedings are ongoing.”
Mr Msigwa added that the construction of SGR was progressing in the Central corridor, with implementation of the country’s strategic project being carried out in phases.
He noted that the total investment in the SGR construction has so far reached 23.3tri/- excluding the Uvinza–Musangati section, which is still in the procurement stage.
“The government, through the Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC), is constructing a modern railway line connecting Dar es Salaam, Mwanza and Kigoma. The railway network is divided into three key regions-Central, South, and North. Contractors are actively working on the basis of both ‘design and construct’ of the Makutupora–Mwanza and Makutupora–Kigoma sections,” he said.
He said that as of November 2024, the construction progress had reached various stages including Makutupora–Tabora section (368 km) 14.53 per cent completion, Tabora–Isaka section (165 km) 6.2 percent completion, Isaka–Mwanza section (341 km) 61.20 per cent completion and Tabora–Kigoma section (506 km) 7.16 per cent completion.
