Alarm over safety on Dar commuter train

Dodoma. Thousands of Dar es Salaam residents are exposing their lives to danger by riding on the dangerously overloaded city commuter train popularly known as ‘Mwakyembe train’ during peak hours.

A survey by The Citizen found out that train wagons were carrying passengers beyond normal capacity. Some passengers were riding dangerously clinging on the wagons in a bid to beat the dreaded traffic jams in the city.

There are now growing fears that if not checked, the situation could lead to a deadly accident should anything go wrong.

Earlier, Minister for Transport Dr Harrison Mwakyembe, said the commuter train had the capacity to carry at least 1,000 passengers per trip, making a total of 16,000 passengers a day.

However, according to this paper’s survey, the train is currently carrying more than 2,000 passengers per trip during peak hours in the morning and early evening. Some passengers who spoke to The Citizen said the situation has been going on for some time now due to poor means of transport in the city. “Many people who reside in Kimara, Ubungo and even Tegeta are currently using the commuter train to Ubungo, from where they board buses to their respective homes,” said Joseph Rutta, a resident of Kimara-Baruti.

Ms Anitha Gabriel who works in the city centre said the problem has been exacerbated by the ongoing Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) construction project.

“We are therefore helpless and always scramble to board the train,” she said.

One of the Tanzania Railway Limited (TRL) workers who did not like his name to appear in the newspaper said the situation was tense and that TRL was doing everything in its capacity to solve it but in vain.

“We are aware of the situation; but there is nothing we can do. We are also using the commuter train to go home, we therefore share the challenges,” she said.

She added that: “Once you get into the coach, it is obvious that you cannot manage to turn your neck to the other side, you cannot even get chance to put your hand in your pocket, this is the situation.”

TRL chief of Railway Transportation Roland Simtengu, said that TRL does not allow overloading in its trains,including the Dar es Salaam commuter train.

He said each wagon has a police officer who is supposed to oversee security related matters including overloading.

“Overloading is against principles and regulations of TRL services, it is our duty to ensure safety and comfort to our passengers,” he said. He aprpently was not aware of what is happening at the moment.

Mr Simtengu said the procedures were underway to bring in new locomotives and wagons, which are mostly set to revive the central line railway services.

He said TRL has many locomotives, but they are not suitable for commuter train services. “The few that we have for commuter services are weak and they are currently operating to their maximum capacity,” he said. He added: “We cannot add wagons because our locomotives cannot manage to move them,”

On profit making, Mr Simtengu said the company was operating at a Sh2 million loss per day. He said the high operating costs are attributed to the engines and carriages, which aren’t cost effective for short journeys. “Some people suggest that we should reduce the number of wagons after peak hours, but this does not add anything because the engines remain the same and they use the same amount of fuel,” he said.

“It is obvious that TRL is not making any profit from operating commuter trains, we are just incurring a Sh2 million loss every day, however, we’re helping other workers to get in offices on time; we help entrepreneurs and many other wananchi, we are just doubling production in other sectors,” he said.

Commuter train services were launched on October 29, 2012. The train operates on a 12 kilometre route from Ubungo Maziwa to the city centre via Mabibo, Tabata, Tabata, and Buguruni suburbs.