By Isaac Swila
Since its launch slightly over two months ago, the standard gauge railway (SGR) has inspired pomp, oomph and excitement to new decibels. A monumental project, the SGR will not only be talked about for ages but will also form a case study for the future.
But when the excitement dies down and the dust finally settles, Kenyans will be keen to quantify the potential economic benefits of such a humongous project, which is supposed to propel the economic situation in the country, transform lives, and most importantly, set the foundation of a major economic take-off.
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The idea behind the SGR was to have in place a network that would run from Mombasa, cut through Nairobi, and snake its way to Kisumu, to Malaba on the border of Kenya and Uganda and beyond. With this in mind, it was projected that the economy of the East Africa region would grow through leaps and bounds, as it would boost trade between Kenya and the neighbouring countries, which have hitherto relied on road network for their transportation needs.
With the SGR reaching the Ugandan border to connect with the Uganda line, economic experts say that trade should not only bloom, but it should also hasten the East African integration, more so the economic pillar.
Barely a week after its launch, there were rather remarkable readings of 7, 000 commuters reported to have used the services. This, in projection, takes the number of those to have used the train since its launch to between 50, 000 – 60, 000.
The Sh700 fare charged for an Economy class ticket and Sh3, 000 for the first class make for an average of Sh1, 850 in fare charges, translating into Sh622 million the revenue likely to be realised by the end of the year.
Of note are the assurances by the State that the government is looking into the modalities of having additional engines to augment the two that are already in operation. If government makes good its promise to add more engines and wagons, the projected Sh622 is bound to double, at least, or even triple, which could make SGR one of the most profitable government ventures in recent times. And this is just the Nairobi-Mombasa phase.
“The demand for Madaraka Express has been on an upward trajectory, so much so that ‘we are looking forward to scheduling additional trains,” Kenya Railways managing director Atanas Maina said recently.
As a matter of perspective, the 7, 000 travellers who used the Madaraka Express in its first 12 is equivalent to 162 bus trips. Quantified in terms of emissions, impact on roads (degradation) and the probability of accidents, the effect of the new rail is huge.
For instance, Modern Coast, which remains the most popular bus company plying the Mombasa-Nairobi route – and the market leader for that matter – charges Sh1,400 for economy rides, Coast Bus charges Sh1,000 and Xenon Dreamliner Sh1,300. Most of these buses have a seating capacity of 43.
But with just two locomotives now in the market, buses will, in the meantime, remain in business, even though they may be forced to revise their charges in the near future if they are to retain a competitive edge. Already the number of commuters who travel with morning buses to Mombasa has drastically dropped as many now opt for the cheaper, quicker, and more comfortable SGR.
Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary James Macharia is upbeat that SGR will spur business. “This (SGR launch) has been one of the Government’s key pillars and we want to see the successful implementation of it. For us to expand the economic growth infrastructural development remains key and that is what the government is doing.”
Granted, industrialised nations such as Germany have invested heavily in infrastructure to spur economic growth – which has catapulted them to the apex of Europe as its largest economy.
And, perhaps, therein are to be found lessons that Kenya can draw from and learn. For instance, the main rail network in Germany is made up of regional and intercity trains. Regional express trains connect regional destinations with larger cities; they make frequent stops and connect with high-speed ICE trains. Regional bahn trains link all local towns; they are slower than regional express trains. Inter-regional trains connect the country’s regions. Then there is the S-Bahn (suburban trains), which are generally a network of trains that operate within the big cities, including Berlin and Munich.
There are also the inter-city trains that operate domestically and internationally between key cities such as Berlin, Paris and Moscow. They are slower than the high-speed ICE trains as they make more stops.
The Inter-city express (ICE) is the most popular train in Germany, connecting key cities. These high-speed trains travel at speeds of up to 320 km/h, meaning it could cover the distance between Mombasa and Nairobi, which the SGR trains currently covers in four and half- hours, in 90 minutes.
Deutsche Bahn Group (DB) operates all these trains in Germany. It offers global mobility and logistical services in over 130 countries worldwide. The DB is a huge industry with more than 300,000 employees, of which about 195,000 are located in Germany.
According to DB, they serve more than 5.5 million customers every day in the passenger transport segment, and about 596,000 tons of freight shipped via rail. More than 1.8 million customers travel via DB buses in Germany every day.
In the passenger transport division, DB Group transports in its trains and busses Europe-wide (including Germany) nearly 12 million passengers daily.
With this huge infrastructural base, it comes as no surprise that for instance, during the 2015 financial year DB Group posted revenues (adjusted) of about $40.5 billion (Sh4.8 trillion).
Kenya could thus borrow vital lessons from the efficient DB and perhaps use it as a benchmark as she bids to revolutionise and popularise the railway transport.
