Uganda Railways Corporation

The **Uganda Railways Corporation** (URC) is the railway system of Uganda. It started in 1977 after the East African Railways Corporation (EARC) ended. URC took over the railway in Uganda. The railway comes from the old British colonial Uganda Railway. It was a metre-gauge railway (1,000 mm or 3 feet 3 inches wide). After World War I, it became part of EARC. After EARC ended, URC faced problems because of war and bad management in Uganda. In 1989, soldiers killed 60 people at Mukura railway station. In 2001, Uganda Railways won an award for helping the economy and community with good transport. In 2023, Uganda Railways started fixing the old railway to Gulu instead of building a new railway.

## South Africa's role

In 2005, a company from South Africa called Rift Valley Railways Consortium (RVRC) was given control to run Uganda and Kenya Railways. RVRC was supposed to start in August 2006 but began in November 2006. They were to manage it for 25 years.

## 2008 Kenya crisis

In 2007–2008, riots in Kenya damaged the railway between Kenya and Uganda. This made it hard for Uganda to get supplies, causing money problems. On 9 October 2008, an Australian company, Toll Holdings, replaced RVRC to manage the railway.

## RVRC loses control

In August 2017, Kenya ended RVRC's agreement because RVRC did not do its job well. Uganda also wanted to end it in October 2017, but RVRC went to court. In February 2018, URC took back control and started running the railway again.

## Train ferries

URC had three train ferries on Lake Victoria: MV Kabalega, MV Kaawa, and MV Pemba. On 8 May 2005, Kabalega and Kaawa crashed into each other almost head-on. Kaawa’s front was damaged, and Kabalega’s front was damaged and started to take in water. Kaawa went back to port, but a few hours later, Kabalega sank about 8 miles (15 km) from the Ssese Islands. In May 2008, a newspaper said the Ugandan government might announce money (UGX 14 billion) to buy a new ferry to replace Kabalega. But in September 2009, another report said the government would not replace Kabalega soon. Instead, the Minister of Works said they would improve the ports at Jinja and Port Bell and let private companies use bigger train car floats. The minister also said Kaawa and Pemba would be fixed and used again. Private companies showed interest in lifting Kabalega from the water and using it privately. In October 2009, the government said again that Kaawa and Pemba would be fixed and used in 2010 and 2011. In June 2018, it was reported that the Tanzanian ferry MV Umoja started running between Mwanza and Port Bell, making 26 trips every month. MV Kaawa, from Uganda, was also expected to join MV Umoja on this route. The route from Dar es Salaam to Kampala cost $65 per tonne, cheaper than the Mombasa to Kampala route, which cost $90 per tonne in June 2018. In February 2022, MV Pamba, newly repaired, started working again after being unused for 17 years.

## ThyssenKrupp's Sudan-Uganda plan

Until recently, only two railway lines were working: the 8 km (5 miles) line from Kampala to Port Bell and the 190 km (120 miles) main line from Kampala to Tororo at the Kenyan border. In October 2010, a company called ThyssenKrupp, through its branch Gleistechnik, was said to be leading a project to connect Juba (the capital of South Sudan) with Gulu in northern Uganda. The railway to Gulu, which had been closed for years due to damage, reopened in September 2013. RVRC operated this route.

## Railway links with neighboring countries

- Kenya: Yes, same gauge (1,000 mm or 3 ft 3 inches).
- Tanzania: No direct railway, only through train ferry; same gauge.
- South Sudan: Proposed, but different gauges (1,000 mm and 1,067 mm).
- Rwanda: No railway link.
- Congo: No railway link; different gauges.

## Passenger service around kampala

In February 2015, Rift Valley Railways (RVR), with help from KCCA, started testing a passenger train service in Kampala and nearby areas. They planned to start regular service in March 2015. The service stopped in October 2017 when RVR lost its contract in Uganda. In 2018, Uganda Railways Corporation took over and restarted the service in February that year. People liked the trains because they were cheap and faster than taxis, which often got stuck in traffic. A new route from Kampala to Port Bell was planned for the 2018/2019 financial year.

## Infobox (company)

- **name**: Uganda Railways Corporation
- **type**: State-owned enterprise, Government-owned corporation
- **predecessor**: East African Railways and Harbours Corporation
- **key people**: **David Musoke Bulega**
Acting Managing Director
- **num employees**: 200+ (2018)
- **industry**: Railway transport