Kisumu Safari Train to resume after restoration of Kijabe line destroyed by floods

The MGR line, which was damaged by heavy rains and washaways, had disrupted the rail services along the route, affecting both freight and passenger operations. 

According to the corporation, the rehabilitation works are now over 70 per cent complete, with full restoration expected by December 2025. 

Once completed, the line will facilitate the resumption of the Kisumu Safari Train.

The project aims to restore key rail links between Kenya’s Central the Western regions, a key route for the movement of passengers and freight.

Freight operations are also set to resume, improving the movement of cargo to western Kenya and neighboring countries, including Uganda, South Sudan and beyond, further strengthening Kenya’s role as a gateway to East and Central Africa.

The ongoing work includes construction of multiple cell culverts, stabilization of embankments, reconstruction of drainage systems, and enhancements to improve resilience against extreme future weather conditions.

“This restoration underscores the Corporation’s strategic commitment to revitalize and sustain Kenya’s Meter Gauge Railway network as a dependable and complementary mode of transport within the national and regional rail ecosystem,” Kenya Railways said in a statement.

The April 2024 floods claimed the lives of nearly 51 people in Mai Mahiu, leaving others displaced. 

The catastrophe was found to be a result of the bursting of a water body created after a blockage in a culvert beneath the railway line.