China Communications Construction Company Ltd (CCCC) recently held an open house event for the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway in Kenya, showcasing operation and maintenance of the railway and how it has changed people's lives.
The largest infrastructure project since the independence of Kenya in 1963, the Mombasa-Nairobi railway is a flagship project of Kenya Vision 2030, the long-term development blueprint for the country, and an early result of China's Belt and Road Initiative.
It was built to Chinese standards with Chinese technologies and China-made equipment under Chinese management patterns. It is an international artery railway to be operated by a Chinese enterprise.
With a total length of 592 kilometers, the railway starts from the port city of Mombasa, transits Nairobi, the capital city, and terminates at an inland container depot in Naivasha.
About 5.32 million passengers and nearly 13 million metric tons of freight have been transported by the railway since it went into service on May 31, 2017.
Its safe, highly-efficient, convenient and economical service has changed local people's travel and freight transport patterns. The railway has become the method of choice to travel between Mombasa and Nairobi.
According to Philip Mainga, managing director of the Kenya Railways Corporation, the passenger and freight transport service of the Mombasa-Nairobi railway has driven economic growth in Kenya and East Africa and has promoted regional economic integration.
Daily operation and maintenance of the railway was shown at the dispatching center, the inland container depot in Nairobi, the freight train examination zone and the locomotive repairing plants.
Sixteen freight and six passenger trains are operated every day on the railway and two more trains are arranged when there is a high volume of goods to transport. Regular maintenance and inspection on the rails, locomotives, carriages and signal devices is a must to ensure safe and highly-efficient transport service.
During operation of the railway, CCCC has fulfilled its social responsibilities.
The company organized several vocational technical training courses and provided Kenyan employees with opportunities to learn in Chinese institutes to improve their technical capacity. At present, more than 80 percent of the 2,500 employees are local people, holding 123 kinds of positions.
Education, medical care and environmental protection have also been highlighted by the company.
(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)
