Kenya Railways on Tuesday, December 21 issued a statement after a Kisumu bound train stalled for close to four hours around Tamu area in Muhoroni leaving passengers stranded.
In a statement released after the incident, which is reported to have taken place at around 1700 hours, the corporation apologised for the delay explaining that the train had stalled because of the heavy rains that had been experienced in the area.
However, Kenya Railways added that the issue had been resolved at the time they issued the statement adding that the passengers had embarked on their journey to Kisumu.
“We wish to inform the public that the Kisumu bound train encountered a slight hitch occasioned by the heavy rains that earlier pounded the Muhoroni area.
“The issue has since been sorted out and the train is already on the way to Kisumu. We sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience caused as a result,” read the statement.
Consequently, the train which was meant to arrive in Kisumu a few minutes after 1800 hours finally arrived at the Kisumu station at 2238 hours. Muhoroni is 62.6 Kilometers away from the lakeside city.
Following their statement, the corporation added that they would work to resolve future issues revealing that they would roll out services for the Kisumu- Butere route in due course.
After the delay, Kenyans took to social media to air their views on the delay, with some lamenting on the quality of the trains.
“We complained about the Nairobi- Kisumu train and some of us were criticized for not recognising government efforts and now our friends and relatives are stuck in the middle of nowhere with all this cold,” Drey Mwangi, a social media user commented.
The Nairobi to Kisumu train started carrying passengers in the newly refurbished metre gauge railway line on Friday, December 17, with passengers being charged Ksh600 for economy class and Ksh2,000 for first class.
After the tickets were fully booked prior to Christmas celebrations, Kenya Railways Managing Director, Philip Mainga, on December 20, revealed that they had added three additional trains for the Kisumu route.
“We have added an additional passenger train from Nairobi to Kisumu to cater for increased demand for travellers heading to western Kenya during this festive season.
“We are also planning to add another train from Kisumu to Nairobi on December 25 and on January 2, 2022,” he stated.
