The standard gauge railway (SGR) posted a 21.2 per cent increase in revenue in the financial year to June 2023 driven by higher cargo haulage and passenger traffic.
Data from the Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) shows the SGR made a record Sh18.2 billion in revenue during the period, a significant increase from Sh15.01 billion it earned the previous year.
The revenue is expected to rise significantly going forward after passenger fares were raised by 50 per cent at the start of the year.
The latest performance marks a fifth successive annual increase in SGR revenue since the train service was launched by former President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2017.
Revenue from SGR makes up 82 per cent of KRC’s revenue, with the increase helping push its total revenue by 25.6 per cent to Sh22.24 billion.
During the period, Kenya Railways also generated Sh2.36 billion in revenue from its meter gauge railway (MGR), Sh436 million from the Railway Training Institute and Sh1.24 billion from non-rail business such as rent, museum and lease of equipment.
The number of passengers who used the SGR grew to 2.52 million during the period, up from 2.35 million in the previous year.
Freight haulage via SGR also rose sharply to 6.29 million tonnes up from 5.66 million tonnes in the year to June 2022. Demand for cargo transportation through the line has grown rapidly from 950,396 tonnes in 2017/18.
“The demand for the service grew over the period arising from its reliability, quality of service and convenience,” said KRC.
Kenya Railways this month raised fares on the SGR train between Nairobi and Mombasa in a bid to keep up with rising costs of running the service, especially increasing fuel prices.
Passengers in first-class coaches now pay Sh4,500 from Sh3,000 last year to travel between the two cities. Those travelling in economy class are paying Sh1,500 up from Sh1,000.
Kenya Railways gradually began taking over SGR operations from Africa Star Railway Operation Company in 2021. Managing Director Philip Mainga in March last year said 90 per cent of SGR operations had already been transferred to Kenya Railways.
