UGANDA: Reconstruction work has started on the 382 km metre-gauge railway line that links Tororo near the Kenyan border to Gulu on the northwest, Uganda Railways Corp has confirmed.
The railway has not seen traffic for about three decades. A reconstruction agreement was signed on April 13 by the Ministry of Works & Transport, Uganda Railways Corp and China Roads & Bridge Corp. Rehabilitation works began on August 4 and are due to last two years, with the USh199·9bn project being fully funded by the Ugandan government.
Work includes the relocation of utilities, rehabilitation of five steel girder bridges and construction of new level crossings. Tracks are to be relaid or refurbished, with older steel sleepers replaced with concrete to improve resilience against vandalism and permit an increase in line speed and capacity.
Upon completion, URC plans to introduce passenger services and hopes to transport a minimum of 500 000 tonnes of freight by the 2025-26 financial year.
Other improvements
URC has now completed emergency rehabilitation works on the Tororo – Mukono route, and works on the Kampala – Mukono section started in April.
Construction of a logistics hub at Gulu started in May 2020; this is being funded by the EU and the UK’s Department for International Development through TradeMark East Africa.
