As four locomotives are launched, the government issues a warning to encroachers on railway territory.
Officials suggested during the launch that the government should rehabilitate the meter-gauge railway line to avoid rapid road deterioration and save business costs.
As four locomotives are launched, the government issues a warning to encroachers on railway territory.
Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) has received four locomotives from the government to increase its cargo hauling capabilities.
The four new locomotives, which were commissioned yesterday, were rebuilt in South Africa and will help to improve freight services on the Kampala-Naivasha line as the company works to speed up network rehabilitation.
Officials suggested during the launch that the government should rehabilitate the meter-gauge railway line to avoid rapid road deterioration and save business costs.
Musa Ecweru, the state minister for Works, who unveiled the new locomotives, assured Ugandans of the government’s resolve to support and keep the railway afloat.
“I want to reassure Ugandans that the Uganda Railway Corporation would never return to its previous state. We’re going to resurrect it and invest resources in it,” he stated.
Encroachers on railway land were warned and advised to leave as quickly as possible.
“The encroachers should have vacated our land, and I’d like to take this opportunity to warn some lawmakers in the areas where the railway runs, who continue to argue that the encroachers have a right to remain on what is meant to be railway property. “That is a crime,” he declared.
Stanley Sendegeya, URC’s managing director, stated that the company’s goal is to repair its ageing locomotive fleet in order to provide complete service to its customers.
