Nairobi-Ruiru train route the most profitable for Kenya Railways
Passengers aboard a Kenya Railways train on December 11, 2020. Kenya Railways earned Sh20 million on its Nairobi-Ruiru passenger line in six months to June.
What you need to know:
- Kenya Railways earned Sh20 million on the passenger line in six months to June.
- Kenya Railways operates a passenger service train service between the Nairobi Central Business District and towns and estates within the Nairobi metropolitan area including Ruiru, Athi River, Kikuyu, Kahawa, Embakasi, Lukenya and Syokimau.
The Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) earned Sh19.19 million in revenue from its train service between Nairobi and Ruiru in the six months to June, making the route the most lucrative for the corporation.
Kenya Railways operates a passenger service train service between the Nairobi Central Business District and towns and estates within the Nairobi metropolitan area including Ruiru, Athi River, Kikuyu, Kahawa, Embakasi, Lukenya and Syokimau.
It also runs long-haul passenger train service to Nanyuki in Laikipia and Kisumu. Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows the State corporation earned Sh89.69 million in revenue from its meter gauge railway) passenger operations between January and June this year.
“The number of passengers transported through the MGR declined by 5.4 per cent from 308,044 in May to 291,322 in June 2023. Revenue generated via MGR dropped marginally from Sh15.1 million in May to Sh14.9 million in June 2023,” said the bureau.
The company handled 1.664 million passengers during the period, with the Nairobi – Ruiru route contributing the largest share of monthly commuters. Kenya Railways ferried 474,537 commuters on the route.
The Nairobi – Embakasi was the company’s second most lucrative route earning Sh14.39 million in revenue. The parastatal carried 360,883 passengers on this route, making it the parastatal’s second busiest.
The train link from the CBD to the standard gauge railway at Syokimau is the third most popular route, carrying 265,093 passengers during the period. The route generated Sh13.91 million in revenue.
The Nairobi – Kisumu route, which carried 20,240 commuters during the six months, earned the company Sh10.9 million in revenue, making it the fourth largest revenue earner.
Kenya Railways relaunched the train service to Kisumu in December 2021 citing increased demand for the service especially for commuters traveling to the region for holidays.
The 12-hour Kisumu train makes the trip from Nairobi every Friday at 6.30 pm and arrives in Kisumu at 6.30 am before making a return trip on Sunday. A first-class ticket to Lakeside city costs Sh2,000 while an economy-class ticket costs Sh600.
Another top revenue earner is the Nairobi – Kikuyu – Limuru route which generated Sh6.055 million in revenue and the Nairobi – Athi River – Lukenya route which earned Sh4.44 million.
The two routes carried 166,556 and 64,051 commuters respectively during the period. The Nairobi – Nanyuki train earned the firm Sh5.63 million in revenue between January and July
