Madaraka Express makes maiden stopover in Voi, residents want jobs

The 3pm Madaraka Express passenger service train on Wednesday made its maiden stopover at Voi station in Taita Taveta.

This is a huge relieve for hundreds of passengers who will be boarding and alighting at the station.

It will be the only station where the evening train will be stopping between Mombasa and Nairobi termini.

Local leaders have been pushing to have more people coming to the county via SGR to boost the region’s economy.

Taita Taveta Governor Andrew Mwadime welcomed the first batch of passengers at the station. He lauded Kenya Railways for acknowledging his request to introduce the Voi train stopover.

"We the people of Taita Taveta are really excited about this development. With the afternoon stop at Voi station, local tourism is set to grow," Mwadime said.

He said the county is a major gateway to East Africa through the Mombasa-Nairobi highway and the Voi-Taveta-Holili highway.

The devolved unit also hosts the expansive twin Tsavo national parks and World War I battlefield historical sites.

It has renowned hiking sites including Vuria hill, which is arguably the highest peak in the coastal region.

Mwadime said he is engaging the national government to speed up the completion of Ikanga Airstrip in Voi and reviving the Voi-Taveta metre gauge railway.

“This will open up the county for more investment opportunities. We want to make Voi a business hub,” he said.

Kenya Railways corporate affairs manager Jacqueline Abuga asked residents to capitalise on the evening train to boost business and productivity.

She said the county is a key spot for Kenya Railways passenger and cargo train operations. Abuga represented managing director Philip Mainga.

"Taita Taveta is served by both the standard gauge railway and metre gauge railway lines. This has eased the movement of passengers and cargo," Abuga said.

Despite the new train stopover, residents said they have not fully benefited from the SGR station since its inception.

They said they have been sidelined in allocation of jobs at the station.

“We want the management to employ our people in the station. We cannot have such a huge investment here yet residents are languishing in poverty because of lack of jobs,” nominated ward rep Mohammed Dudu said.

County commissioner Lyford Kibaara urged residents to stay calm as he engaged the managing director to allocate more jobs to residents.

He said residents must be prioritised for job opportunities.

Kibaara directed the management to digitise the collection of parking levies at the station.