Transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Surface transport within the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has always been difficult. The terrain and climate of the Congo Basin present serious barriers to road and rail construction, and the distances are enormous across this vast country. Furthermore, chronic economic mismanagement and internal conflict has lead to serious under-investment over many years.

As an illustration of transport difficulties in the DRC, the so-called "national" route, used to get supplies to Bukavu, consisted of the following:

Matadi to Kinshasa - rail
Kinshasa to Kisangani - river boat
Kisangani to Ubundu - rail
Ubundu to Kindu - river boat
Kindu to Kalemie - rail
Kalemie to Kalundu - boat on Lake Tanganyika
Kalundu to Bukavu - road

In other words, goods had to be loaded and unloaded eight times and the total journey would take many months.

several of the rail lines are portage railways to bypass rapids.

Some parts of the DRC are more accessible from neighbouring countries than from Kinshasa. For example Goma is linked by road to the Kenyan port of Mombasa, and Lubumbashi and the rest of Katanga Province is linked to Zambia. These links are generally more important for the east and south of the country, and more heavily used, than surface links to the capital. In practice, air transport is the only effective means of moving between many places within the country.

Many of the routes listed below are in poor condition and may be operating at only a fraction of their original capacity (if at all), despite recent attempts to make improvements. The United Nations Joint Logistics Centre (UNJLC) has set up an operation in Congo to support humanitarian relief agencies working there. It publishes bulletins and updates about the transport situation on the UNJLC web site.[1]

[edit] Railways

Train from Lubumbashi arriving in Kindu on newly refurbished line

The national system is mostly operated by the Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo (SNCC). Not all rail lines link up, but are generally connected by river transport. There are separate systems based on

Matadi-Kinshasa Railway: From Matadi Harbour to Kinshasa, operated by ONATRA, 3½ feet (42 inches / 1067 mm; was originally constructed as 765 mm gauge^[1]); three trains a week.^[2]

This railway lost traffic to road transport when the Matadi-Kinshasa road was reestablished in 2000 and it is now planned to revitalise it with Chinese help.^[3] An agreement was signed in July 2006 between ONATRA and a Chinese company (CMIC) which will renovate the track, trains, telecommunications, signal system and electric supply. This line is a bypass of the Livingstone Falls at the Congo River.

Vicicongo line: Bumba - Aketi - Likati - Bondo, Aketi - Andona - Isiro - Mungbere and Andona - Titule, 60 cm; Aketi to Isiro one train every two or three month who takes one week to run this 558 km. Bumba - Aketi one train in 2002.^[4]
Big lakes line: 1st section Kisangani to Ubundu, was 1000 mmm, today still 1000 mm^[5] or 3½ feet since 1955^[6] A train runs after arrival at Kisangani of a ship from Kinshasa or before departure of a ship to Kinshasa, which may happen about every 2 to 3 month, no fixed schedule. No connection at Ubundu to Kindu, the shipping section Ubundu-Kindu is not in operation.^[7] This line is a bypass of the Stanley Falls at the Congo River.
Big lakes line: 2nd section Kindu - Kabalo - Kalemie (Lake Tanganika), 3½ feet (42 inches / 1067 mm) This line was 1000mm gauge as the first section until 1955, when the gauge was changed for the connection with the Katanga line in 1956.
Katanga line: Kabalo - Kamina - Likasi - Lubumbashi - Sakania - Sambia, 3½ feet (1067 mm)
Kasai line: Ilebo - Kamina, 3½ feet (1067 mm)
Benguela line: Kamina - Dilolo - Angola (Benguela Railway), 3½ feet (42 inch / 1067 mm)
Mayumbe line: Boma to Tshela, 2 feet (24 inch) (610mm) gauge^[8]
former Kivu Railway: Kalundu-Kamaniola (- Bukavu), 1931-1958, 3½ feet^[9]

total: 4,772 km (2002), 5,138 km (1995);
narrow gauge:

3,621 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); (2002)
125 km 1.000-m gauge; (2002) ev. transformed to 3½ ft gauge in 1955^[10]
1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2002);
3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); (1996)

[edit] Railway links to adjacent countries

Republic of Congo - no - same gauge 1067mm
Central African Republic - no - no railways
Sudan - no - same gauge 1067mm
Uganda - no - break of gauge 1067mm/1000mm
Rwanda - no - no railways
Burundi - no - no railways
Tanzania - no - train ferry - break of gauge 1067mm/1000mm
Zambia - yes - same gauge - 1067mm Interconnects with railways of Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa
Angola - yes - same gauge - 1067mm This link to the port of Benguela has been unusable since the 1970s.

- Rail network description from UNJLC

[edit] Maps

Railways in southern Africa

UNJLC Map

[edit] Cities served by railways

Kinshasa - capital - inland port - railhead
Kasangulu
Mudimba
Songololo
Matadi - ocean port - railhead

Bumba

[edit] Inland lines

Kindu - river port, railhead
Kibombo
Kongolo
Kabalo - junction for Kalemie
Kabongo
Kamina - junction
Kaniama
Mweni-Ditu
Tshimbulu
Kanga
Mweka
Bukama
Lubudi
Tenke - junction
Dilolo - border with Angola
Likasi
Lubumbashi
Sakania - border with Zambia

Ilebo - riverport - railhead

Nyunzu
Kindu - river port
Kalemie - inland port railhead

[edit] Kisangani portage

Kisangani - riverport and railhead
Ubundu - riverport and railhead, river transport not in service now

[edit] Bumba line

Bumba - river port
Aketi
Bondo - terminus

[edit] Highways

According to UNJLC[2], the total network, in 2005 is believed to be as follows:-
total: 171,250 km
paved: 2,250 km
unpaved: 15,000 km
tracks 43,000 km
country roads 21,000 km
local roads or footpaths 90,000 km

However, a DRC government document shows that, also in 2005, the network of main highways in good condition was as follows:
paved: 1,226 km
unpaved: 607 km

See published

UNJLC reports that, although the road network is theoretically divided into four categories (national roads, priority regional roads, secondary regional roads and local roads), this classification is of little practical use because some roads simply do not exist. For example, National Road 9 is not operational and cannot be detected by remote sensing methods.

The following roads are part of what has been called the Kinshasa Highway, from the Republic of the Congo to Kenya through Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda or Burundi, and the DRC.