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Passenger service vehicle operators at the railway bus terminal will be relocated by the end of the year to make way for the Sh30 billion Nairobi Railway City project.
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Kenya Railways Managing Director Philip Mainga confirmed that an agreement has been made with the National Transport and Safety Authority to move the operators to the Green Park terminal once the project begins.
The Nairobi Railway City project, a key initiative in the UK-Kenya Strategic Partnership, will cover 425 acres in the heart of Nairobi. It is being funded by the United Kingdom through a public-private partnership (PPP), amounting to Sh30 billion.
Mainga stated that preliminary work to support the project has been completed, and once the relocation is finished, passengers will use a new underground tunnel, currently under construction along Haile Selassie Avenue, to reach the Central Business District.
“The operators are waiting for us to begin, and they will move to the Green Park terminal. We’ve fulfilled our commitment and assured them we wouldn’t relocate them until we were ready to proceed,” Mainga said.
The project is expected to take three years to complete and aims to improve mobility and connectivity within Nairobi and its surrounding areas. It will integrate key transport hubs through an expanded Central Station, new bus rapid transit (BRT) lines and stations, and revamped matatu terminals, providing clearer transit routes to and from the CBD.
Inspired by global railway cities like London’s Kings Cross Station, the Nairobi Railway City will combine travel, business, and leisure spaces.
The initiative was first introduced at the UK-Africa Investment Summit in early 2020, with a groundbreaking ceremony held by President William Ruto on December 7, 2022.
“Nairobi Railway City is fully underway. We’ve completed all the necessary studies and consultations and are now ready for procurement, which will begin in the 2025-2026 financial year,” said Mainga.
He also highlighted other projects nearing completion, such as a key bridge and workshops in Makadara, marking significant progress in the city’s railway infrastructure transformation.
“The bridge is almost finished, and the Makadara workshops are complete. We are preparing for major developments, including public lanes, platforms, and expansions, which will start between 2025 and 2026,” Mainga added.
Although there are calls for extending the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), Mainga emphasized that the metre gauge railway remains a vital part of Kenya’s transport network, serving both passengers and freight.
Currently, the Nairobi commuter rail system transports between 20,000 and 30,000 passengers daily.
