Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda will soon sign a policy under the SGR Protocol, requiring all heavy cargo to be transported exclusively by rail between Mombasa and the capitals of the four countries.

Speaking in Kampala at a ceremony welcoming the arrival of Rift Valley Railways’ advance batch of refurbished General Electric locomotives on October 20, Ugandan Junior Minister for Works John Byabagambi said a decision had been taken by the Kenyan and Ugandan governments to maintain the existing metre-gauge rail alongside the standard gauge rail, because there was room for more than one rail operator.

“Ninety-three per cent of cargo out of Mombasa is still road-bound, so the SGR can and will complement the metre gauge. This is one of the policies contained in the SGR Protocol, and any cargo with a weight above 15 tonnes will not be allowed on our roads. This will save our expensive road infrastructure while ensuring that operators of the rail networks get enough traffic tonnage to pay their way,” Mr Byabagambi said.

Despite protections in the concession agreement, Mr Byabagambi’s remarks will reassure markets that had become sceptical about RVR’s future in the face of recent calls to terminate the concession by Kenya over alleged underperformance.

The rail operator was accused of failing to achieve a target of taking at least 10 per cent of the haulage business from the roads.

According to Uganda Railways managing director Charles Kateba, the strategy to use both services has been adopted because the metre gauge will form the logistical backbone for development of the SGR, and more importantly for Uganda where the government was pushing RVR to reinvest in the 500km Tororo-Pakwach line.

Currently, the line, which was revived last October after 20 years, cannot meet the demand for services, especially from the Kenyan cement industry, which uses it for trans-shipments to South Sudan. But RVR says recent investments in rolling stock and track improvement will change this state of affairs over the next few months.

Ugandan RVR stockholder Charles Mbire said new culverts and bridges installed between Jinja and Tororo, along with the power of the new locomotives, will lead to an increase in volume and speed.

“Each of these engines can haul 1,200 tonnes, and improvements to the track on the Ugandan side mean these heavier and longer trains can now run all the way to Kampala. That increases our capacity, and also improves time keeping because we no longer need to break up trains in Tororo,” Mr Mbire told The EastAfrican.

Although only three of the 20 locomotives on order has arrived, Mr Mbire said the number of engines will double to 40 by June next year.

He said there has been a 40 per cent increase in cargo moved between Mombasa and Kampala during the year to date, compared with the same point in 2013, and that transit times had been cut down to an average of 3.7 days.

The SGR, whose construction has started on the Kenyan side, is set to move cargo at 80km per hour and passengers at 120km per hour. Byabagambi says this aspect should make the SGR attractive regardless of the lower tariff the metre gauge will be charging.

There have also been concerns that the SGR, which is being developed at a cost of more than $20 billion for the entire network, will not be able to compete against a revamped metre gauge, a notion Mr Byabagambi dismisses.