Tanzania conducts trials for electric train from commercial capital

Dar es Salaam. The Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) today, February 26, 2024, commenced its inaugural trial journey of the electric Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) train from Dar es Salaam to Morogoro as part of the implementation of an order by the President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

She directed that by July this year, SGR train services from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma should have begun. Tanzania has been postponing its implementation since April 2017.

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President Samia was quoted saying, "I have been hearing about changes in the start dates for train services via the SGR railway from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma, and indeed, citizens are tired of excuses; they want to see the railway in operation. Therefore, I direct that by the end of July 2024, SGR railway services between Dar es Salaam and Dodoma must have commenced."

The test marks a significant step forward in Tanzania's efforts to modernize its transportation infrastructure and boost connectivity across the nation.

Tanzania targets to replace the rather aged and less efficient meter-gauge railway system established during the colonial East African Railways.

The South Korean-made train, coupled with the Turkish/Chinese-built railway line, is poised to become one of Africa's most advanced cargo and passenger rail systems, capable of reaching speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour.

This enhanced speed will significantly reduce travel times and facilitate the efficient movement of goods and people throughout Tanzania.

Once commissioned for service, the SGR trains, running at an average speed of 160km per hour, will cut the time between Dar and Morogoro to about two hours from the current four-hour journey by buses and five hours by train on the old metre gauge railway.

The 300km Dar-Morogoro line is the first phase of the SGR project, which is expected to run up to Mwanza on the shores of Lake Victoria and Kigoma on the northeastern shores of Lake Tanganyika in five phases. There are plans to add connections to Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of the East African Railway Master Plan.

Phase two of the SGR project runs from Morogoro to Makutupora, covering 422 kilometres. The line is being extended to Tabora, 294km away in phase three.

The fourth phase will link Tabora to Isaka, a 130km line, where it will branch to Mwanza and Kigoma.

Tanzania proposed SGR stations

300km Dar-Morogoro line is complete.

Once complete, it is hoped that the new railway will reduce road congestion and decrease freight costs by 40 percent.