Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) Railway Assessment

The Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) is the largest railway network with a total length of 2,706 km, governed by the Tanzania Railways Corporation Act, 1977 and the Railway Act supplement of 2017. The network connects the major cities and towns of Dar es Salaam, Tabora, Mpanda Kigoma, Mwanza, Tanga, Arusha, and Moshi. TRC also operates a Multimodal rail service link via ferry service across Lake Victoria, connecting Tanzania to Uganda by dedicated rail ferries which berth at rail ferry piers that permit direct ferry access from rail tracks. The rail ferry connects the Tanzania Central Line at Mwanza with the Uganda Railways at Port Bell. Typical travel times are 19 hours between Mwanza and Port Bell. The Central line connects with Dar es Salaam Port, transporting cargo to and from global markets to Uganda. However, the central corridor connects Dar es salaam to Kigoma port through Lake Tanganyika to Kalemie Province in DR Congo.

TRC plays an important role in the Tanzanian economy, carrying both passengers and freight. In 2022-2023, TRC carried a total of 499,891 passengers and 413,155 tonnes of freight. Continuous improvement of track has meant in the last financial year meant no rail line closure and TRC has further investment in rolling stock planned with 19 new locomotives on order from Germany and South Korea due in batches, 2 electric due end of 2023, consisting of 10 units for passenger service and 9 for freight services.

For more information on government contact details, please see the following link: 4.1 Government Contact List.

Travel Time Matrix Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC)

Average speed is 35-40 KPH

Railway Companies and Consortia

Tanzania has two railway lines one operates on the central and northern corridor (Tanzania Railways Corporation -TRC) and the second operates on the southern highland's corridor (Tanzania Zambia Railways Authority -TAZARA).

Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) is the sole operator of the central and northern rail lines it does not have open access for private rail operators. However, it supports operation of private owned wagons, i.e. East Africa railway haulers provide a variety of logistics services and have 100 rail wagons available for operation on the TRC rail network. The TRC rail network plays an important role in the country's economy, transporting both passengers and freight. In 2021-2022, TRC carried over 428,376 passengers and 416,866 tons of freight. The TRC regulation of fares is governed by the Railway Act 2017, article 60 (b) which gives a mandate to the regulator (LATRA) to set tariff, levy, rates, fare, and other charges as may be imposed by TRC.

The mechanism for regulating fares on Tanzanian rail services is done by LATRA through a process of internal consultation and analysis. The LATRA will consider a number of factors when setting fares, including the cost of operating the rail services, the level of demand, and the fares charged by other transportation modes. Therefore, TAZARA on the Tanzania side is required to submit its proposed fares to the government-LATRA for approval before they can be implemented. LATRA will review the proposed fares to ensure that they are reasonable and affordable.

 https://www.eastafricahauliers.co.tz/

For more information on railway company contact details, please see the following link: 4.9 Railway Companies Contact List.

Capacity Table

Key Route Information

Rail line from Tabora to Kigoma is being upgraded to carry weight capacity of 80 pounds over the next 2 years.

Security Trains travel with armed police on board

Key Stations

Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) Railway Assessment

The Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA), is a bi-national railway linking the Southern Africa Regional transport network to Eastern Africa's seaport of Dar es Salaam, offering both freight and passenger transportation services between and within Tanzania and Zambia. The Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) rail network is an 1,860 km railway line connecting Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia. The railway also serves the landlocked countries of Malawi, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. TAZARA operates and maintains the southern rail corridor, however, TAZARA also allow private operators use the rail line for freight. major transporters of mineral ores and refined copper, manganese, cobalt and other minerals out of Zambia and the DRC. The effects Climate change poses a major threat to the TAZARA rail network. Extreme weather events, such as floods and droughts, can damage infrastructure and disrupt services alone the southern line. TAZARA has cargo terminus, with gantry cranes and other handling facilities at New Kapiri Mposhi, Kasama, Makambako and Dar es Salaam stations. A trans-shipment facility at Kidatu that handles the transfer of cargo from the wider gauge (1,067mm) wagons of TAZARA onto the narrower gauge (1,000mm) wagons of the Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) facilitating interconnectivity amongst Southern, Central and East Africa.

The presidents of Tanzania and Zambia have announced that Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) is planning to build a new Cape gauge (1,067mm) rail line into Zambia to connect the country's copper mines to the port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. The new line would be approximately 300 kilometres long and would run from the town of Kapiri Mposhi to the border with Tanzania.

The proposal for the new line is still in the early stages of development, but TAZARA has already started to secure funding and investment. In 2022, the African Development Bank approved a $500 million loan to support the project.

 For more information on government contact details, please see the following link 4.9 Railway Companies Contact List.

Travel Time Matrix Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA)

Railway Companies and Consortia

Tanzania has two railway lines one operates on the central and northern corridor (Tanzania Railways Corporation -TRC) and the second operates on the southern highlands corridor (Tanzania Zambia Railways Authority -TAZARA).

Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) is the operator of the southern rail corridor however TAZARA allow two private companies Operate freight services Under licence on the rail line. These companies, Inland logistics Africa (ILA) ( https://www.inlandlogisticsafrica.com/ )and Calabash Freight limited (http://calabashfreight.com/ ) provide intermodal logistics services including their own rolling stock on the TAZARA rail network.

Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) is responsible for setting and proposing fares on its rail services. Hence TAZARA is required to set fares that are reasonable and affordable for passengers and freight shippers. They are also required to consult with the relevant stakeholders, such as the (Land Transport Regulatory Authority-LATRA), passenger groups, and business associations, before setting fares.

The mechanism for regulating fares on Tanzanian rail services is done  by LATRA through a process of internal consultation and analysis. The LATRA will consider a number of factors when setting fares, including the cost of operating the rail services, the level of demand, and the fares charged by other transportation modes. Therefore, TAZARA on the Tanzania side is required to submit its proposed fares to the government-LATRA for approval before they can be implemented. LATRA will review the proposed fares to ensure that they are reasonable and affordable.

For Fares and passenger timhttp://tazarasite.com/fare-charts-and-train-timetables

Capacity Table

Key Route Information

The southern rail corridor is a vital transportation link for the region, carrying both passengers and freight. In 2021, TAZARA carried a total of 1 million passengers and 1.1 million tonnes of freight. TAZARA engaged a GIS mapping Company to conduct a risk assessment of the southern rail corridor to identify potential areas at risk of landslide and flooding to prioritize were to target risk mitigation measures to minimise disruption to services resulting no  

Key Stations