The Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara) is looking to increase haulage capacity and land a deal with an external railway operator for the running of the bi-national railway.
An engineer was dispatched to South Africa this week to conduct due diligence on five U30 mainline locomotives to be hired in the next few weeks, while the authority is currently awaiting approval for an Open Access Agreement with a private railway operator that has already started conducting trial runs between Ndola, Zambia, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
This in order to meet the huge demand expected to result from the new railway regulation recently passed by the Zambian minister of transport, Brian Mushimba.
“The decision to hire extra locomotives and engage private operators in Open Access is meant to increase capacity to adequately handle the positive response from the market, especially in view of the passing of the Statutory Instrument that compels manufacturers in Zambia to channel 30% of bulky traffic to the railways,” said Tazara managing director Bruno Ching’andu.
