The Kenya Railways Corporation has asked passengers using the Madaraka Express to arrive at least one hour before departure, as heavy rains continue to disrupt movement across the country.
In a notice issued on April 29, the corporation said ongoing rains and traffic congestion have made it harder for travellers to reach train stations on time.
“Due to the ongoing heavy rains and traffic snarl-ups, passengers are advised to arrive at their departure station at least one hour before the departure time indicated on their ticket,” Kenya Railways said.
The statement indicated that the directive was to ensure seamless handling of travelers through ticketing checks and other related processes at stations.
Normally, the above processes take between 30 to 60 minutes. But in cases where traffic is high, security checking could take up to 30 minutes and ticket printing could be another hindrance.
In this regard, Kenya Railways stated that passengers who come very late may not board on the trains as it happens normally because the boarding process ends a few minutes to departure. Normally, the call for passengers to board the trains is made eleven minutes to departure while platform gate closure is done ten minutes to departure.
These advisories were issued at a time when flooding along roads was reported to cause traffic jams along the routes to stations.
Several places in the country have experienced this, especially because several roads are now either damaged or closed down. For instance, KeNHA has already closed down portions of roads such as the Iten-Kabarnet road because of the effects that are being caused by these rains.
The Kenya Red Cross Society indicates that these rains have resulted in death and displacement of people in various places where people are still being rescued. The Kenyan government has mobilized the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to assist in rescue missions.
Various other agencies such as NTSA have also issued statements warning people about these rains.
In addition, the Kenya Meteorological Department has predicted that there will be more rainfall in the next few days, and hence the residents living in flood-prone areas must remain alert.
On the same note, Kenya Railways says that this advisory is important to passengers who should not miss out on any train while in the rainy season.
