The Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) has refuted claims that 10 of the 11 Spanish trains bought during former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s era had broken down and were no longer in operation.....CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
In a statement fired at Nation on Sunday evening, the corporation assured its customers that the Diesel Multiple Units are still operational under the Nairobi Commuter Rail (NRC) service.
KRC noted that all the 11 DMUs bought in 2020 were in good condition and were subjected to regular checks and maintenance.
“Kenya Railways would like to state facts concerning the story that appeared in the Nation Media’s Weekly Review magazine on Sunday 11th August 2024 regarding Diesel Multiple Units (DMU) which operate under the Nairobi Commuter Rail (NCR) service,” the corporation stated.
“Contrary to the story, the eleven DMUs acquired by KRC in 2020 are fully operational and in good condition. The DMUs, which operates on the Meter Gauge Railway lines runs daily as per schedule.”
KRC further explained that the trains were acquired to operate along the Nairobi-Syokimau and Embakasi routes but the DMUs were rededicated to operate on the Embakasi route while new high-capacity ones were bought for the Syokimau route due to high demand.
“Acquisition of the DMUs was in line with the Kenya Railways Commuter Rail Masterplan, which aims at revitalizing the Nairobi Commuter Rail service. The DMUs have been functional and continue addressing the immediate actions identified under the Masterplan for provision of reliable, safe, and comfortable modern rail transport services,” added the notice.
“Implementation of Phase One of the Masterplan has been successful, leading to an increased demand for the commuter service. KR is therefore in the process of implementing Phase Two of the Masterplan under the Nairobi Railway City Project which entails, among others, the purchase of new high capacity Diesel Electric Multiple Units (DEMUs) with a sitting capacity of 1200 pax, double the capacity of the existing DMUS.
The Diesel-Electric Multiple Units (DEMUs) is an eight-car set comprising of motorized and non-motorized units that can be detached to subsets of lower capacity.”
In the report, Nation had raised concerns that the trains valued at Ksh2 billion had stalled due to the poor state of engines and wasting taxpayer money in the process.
The report further showed that 10 of the trains developed mechanical issues three years after launch, a claim Kenya Railways flagged as factually wrong…CONTINUE READING>>
