Tanzania’s minister for works, transport and communications, Engr. Isack Kamwele, said the country is set to test its first, maiden, cheaper and very superior own funded electric train.
CTGN reports that the train is tipped to be one of Africa’s high speed trains with projected speeds of up to 160 mph.
Kamwele disclosed this at a historic event to launch the flash butt welding of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) exercise.
The minister said first trials for the speedy electric train will be conducted in July this year to cover a section of the SGR. The first 300 km phase running from Dar-es-Salaam to Morogoro with six stations in between will commence its operations in December this year, Kamwele reportedly said.
There will be three passenger trains in phase one at the starting point that will be taking daily round trips between the two cities. Each passenger train is capable of making 9 to 12 trips a day or more.
The train will use concrete sleepers which improve durability and give the railway network capacity to carry up to 35 tonnes per axle loads. The rails can survive up to 40 years before any major repairs while the train bridge can survive up to 100 years.
The project has boosted the country’s employment as over 26,000 jobs have been created by the $1.9bn project. More job opportunities are expected in the second phase and subsequent ones and once the stations becomes fully operational.
