EDITORIAL: Give transporters hearing – Business Daily

The East African Cables has added its voice to the growing calls for the government to rethink its policy forcing importers to collect their cargo at the Nairobi Inland Container Depot, saying the last mile transport costs are eating into its already thin margins.

Indeed, this is a matter that the relevant authorities ought to prioritise considering that many importers report that the cost savings they make by using the SGR to haul their cargo from Mombasa are wiped out by the steep cost of moving the same from the depot by road.

This is contrary to the business-spurring ease of transport dream that was sold to businesses at the inception of the modern railway.

The high costs of transport are reversing the vision espoused by the Big Four agenda.

Already, some transporters have had to cut jobs as well as orders to the high cost of doing business through the depot, hence the need to review the system and make it more efficient and cost-effective.

Instead of issuing fiats with far-reaching cost implications on stakeholders, as the State has increasingly opted to do, it should instead opt for broad consultations.