On 15 April, Kenya Railway Corporation (KRC) signed a joint venture agreement with InfraCo, commissioning a two-year study into upgrading commuter rail services around Nairobi. It is the intention to implement the recommendations within 18 months thereafter, with an envisaged completion date of 2012 – the year in which the Rift Valley Railways (RVR) exclusive right to operate passenger services runs out.

At an estimated cost between KSh8bn and KSh12bn ($US104-156m), the upgrade would involve expansion of the existing metre-gauge commuter network from 61km to 170. Additional services are foreseen on the lines to Thika, Nakuru and Athi River, together with a new branch linking Nairobi to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, offering a thirty-minute journey time.

It is intended to replace the present locomotive-hauled fleet of 41 coaches with about 196 diesel-multiple-unit vehicles, increasing capacity more than five times to 100,000 passengers daily.

InfraCo, an international infrastructure development trust owned by the World Bank and six European donor agencies, will fund the $US5m study, then sell its stake in the joint venture to the private sector if the project is successful. If the project does not go ahead, the money will be treated as a grant. “InfraCo’s willingness to take such a huge risk should tell you that the project is highly viable”, KRC managing director Nduva Muli is quoted saying.

[ The World Bank is on record preferring road-based, ie rapid bus, solutions to urban passenger transport development because equivalent capacity can often be obtained at much lower first cost. We await the study results with interest. – editor

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