The Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) recorded a 65,000 passenger drop and reduced cargo volumes in the first quarter of 2024.
This was outlined in the Quarterly Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Report by the Kenya Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) released on Wednesday, July 2024.
KNBS noted in the report that on average, the transportation and storage sector’s real GDP registered an estimated decelerated growth of 3.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2024 compared to a 6.6 per cent growth recorded in the same quarter of 2023.
“The number of passengers transported via Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) declined by 11.0 per cent from 597.5 thousand in the first quarter of 2023 to 531.7 thousand in the first quarter of 2024,” the KNBS Quarterly Report indicated.
“Similarly, the freight haulage via SGR declined by 17.4 per cent from 1,577.9 thousand metric tonnes in the first quarter of 2023 to 1,303.3 thousand metric tonnes in the period under review.”
While SGR continued to struggle with cargo and passenger volumes, KNBS noted that the revenues increased marginally.
This could be attributed to a 50 per cent ticket price hike introduced in January 2024.
“Revenue generated from freight stream rose marginally from Ksh3,140 million in the first quarter of 2023 to Ksh3,245 million in the corresponding quarter of 2024,” the report indicated.
Despite SGR registering reduced cargo volumes, the Port of Mombasa recorded a 7.3 per cent throughput from 8,792 thousand metric tonnes in the first quarter of 2023 to 9,430 thousand metric tonnes in the period under review.
SGR depends largely on cargo from the Port of Mombasa to sustain its operations but is in competition with other logistics companies including trucks and the metre gauge railway line.
The SGR line was built by former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration through a loan from China at the tune of Ksh800 billion.
Despite the struggling operations, President William Ruto’s administration has signalled a willingness to borrow more cash to extend the SGR line from Naivasha to the Ugandan border.
