Let new railway station reflect Mombasa's growth and heritage

A section of rail wagon fumigate at Nairobi Central Railway station. [File, Standard]

In a few months the whistle will ring again at the Old Mombasa Railway Station as the first passenger train in years hauls in travellers. It will be an entirely different journey as the passengers will have travelled from the modern Standard Gauge Railway station at Miritini to the Island Railway Station. Unlike the traveller from years gone by when the train set off from Nairobi, the new Metre Gauge Railway is actually a commuter line connecting the island to the mainland in the west. A lot of thought went into the project with proponents arguing passengers should be cheaply and conveniently transferred to the island where they can easily connect to other destinations.

However, the Mombasa Island, which the new Metre Gauge Railway will encounter, is very different from the one the last train visited. The old Mombasa was less densely populated and had lower traffic density. A good number of those embarking from the railway station simply walked to Mwembe Tayari to connect to other destinations. The taxi rank at the station held only a few ramshackle vehicles. Only tourists and the few upper-class travellers bothered to take a taxi. Likewise, there were only a few vehicles along the way to Mwembe Tayari. The walk to the main bus station was both leisurely and safe.