Work progress at the Mombasa terminus Standard Gauge Railway in
Miritini. The road connecting Mombasa Island to the station will begin
in two months. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG
Construction of a commuter road network
connecting Mombasa Island and the Miritini Standard Gauge Railway (SGR)
station will be underway in two months.
The road, whose
construction starts after SGR operations, is expected to enable people
access the Miritini terminus from the coastal Island and vice versa.
“By
the time we complete the railway line infrastructure which is coming in
less than two months there would be the road connectivity through
Magongo and Changamwe to the Island. The railway will not work in total
isolation...It will work with the road network,” SGR consultant engineer
James Karanja said Thursday.
Speaking in Mombasa, Mr
Karanja said the road will also connect to adjacent areas while
expressing optimism of expanding the network to Moi International
Airport and the town centre.
“Once that is done, a
desirable future option will be to have a commuter railway from Miritini
station passing through the Moi International Airport and to the
central business district. But for the immediate need we shall utilise
both the railway and road transport to create easier mode of travel for
passengers moving from upcountry to the Island and its environs and
back,” he added.
Standard Gauge Railway Consultant James Karanja speaking during the
Federation of Kenya Employers' AGM in Mombasa on April 20, 2017. PHOTO |
WACHIRA MWANGI | NMG
The engineer said Miritini was the
ideal place to build a passenger terminal due to availability of land
for expansion of the rail and proximity to Mombasa Port, saying the two
infrastructures were meant to co-exist to boost trade.
“We needed space without being hindered. We had a
location in Changamwe, but we did not want to interfere with the flight
path of planes coming to land at Moi Airport. Then it meant we had to
dig down the track we found there was an existing oil pipeline...we
could have compromised safety. Our objective was the port that’s why we
went for Miritini,” Mr Karanja said.
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