TANZANIA Railway Corporation (TRC) has taken delivery of three new electric locomotives and 27 passenger coaches for the new Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) that is under construction between Dar es Salaam and Morogoro and that will eventually extend to the border with Rwanda.

The rail vehicles arrived by ship at the port of Dar es Salaam on December 30 2023 and are currently undergoing commissioning by TRC, before beginning test runs on the new route, which is electrified at 25kV ac.

Four out of the 17 electric 160 km/h locomotives being supplied by Hyundai Rotem have now arrived in Tanzania. They will haul new coaches built by fellow Korean manufacturer Sung Shin Rolling Stock Technology (SSRST). The latest batch of 27 coaches, including 13 business class and 14 economy class cars, is undergoing testing in Dar es Salaam and brings the total of 59 coaches ordered from SSRST now in Tanzania to 56.

One of the three remaining coaches to be delivered will be a special presidential vehicle for the country’s leader, Ms Samia Suluhu Hassan.

TRC has previously taken delivery of 30 former DB Regio double-deck coaches, which were overhauled in Mukran, Germany, before being repainted in TRC’s orange and white livery.

TRC has also ordered 10 EMUs from Hyundai Rotem, each with a capacity for 640 passengers. These are expected to arrive in Tanzania by October. Source: IRJ