Vandals suspected to be hirelings of unscrupulous scrap metal dealers in Rongai, Kajiado county, have paralyzed the Nairobi-Narok Standard Gauge Railway.
Since August, the line has beden vandalized by sawing off bridge steel bars and carting away the loot.
The vandals, seemingly taking advantage of lax security in the area, are also vandalizing fly-over bridges on the Olkeri road that leads to Matasia, Ngong’ and Kiserian towns.
Theft of rails, residents said, had been reported, but no arrests had been made, and the vandals were still busy harvesting the remaining rails at night.
The ongoing vandalism is said to be the work of street boys, bodaboda operators, matatu touts and bands of criminals, who sell the stolen metal rails to scrap metal dealers in Rongai’s Gataka trading center.
The destruction has inconvenienced businesses relying on the railway line to transport goods from Nairobi to Narok.
During the spot check by Hot News, it was evident that the vandals sawed off bars of support steel at the affected railway bridges and carted away the stolen metal.
According to Inspector Mercy Mino who is in charge of Critical Infrastructure Police Unit in the area, vandals are taking advantage of the forest.
“Part of SGR passes inside Olkeri forest and thieves are taking advantage, they vandalize at night and hide the metals in the forest, we are currently making efforts to arrest them,” she said.
Area chief Kororio Olkeri said last month the police arrested two boda boda riders who were carrying metals they stole from the SGR and taking them to Matasia town to sell.
“We have had this problem for the last few months. I think the bodaboda operators are to blame. I also think the railway police are not doing enough to patrol the area at night,” he said.
A spot check also shows scrap metal and welding shops have increased in the nearby trading Centers like Gataka, Nkaimurunya and Merisho. The vandals are also said to take metals all the way to Nairobi CBD where they have ready market.
Inspectors and surveyors established that the magnitude of destruction on the SGR was so enormous that the rails could hardly support a train.
Phase 2A of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Nairobi to Naivasha was officially opened in October last year for passenger services by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The SGR is expected to promote development in East African countries, including Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda which also has a dry port in Naivasha.
The Sh150 billion line cuts across Nairobi, Kajiado, Narok and Nakuru.
The line has four passenger stations namely; Ongata Rongai, Ngong, Mai Mahiu and Suswa and one inter-change station at Nachu station.