Senegal Day #7: My Attempt to Ride Dakar’s New Commuter Train Fails as It’s Still Under Construction

One of Senegal’s new trains in the Colobane railyard

April 18, 2019

By LUCAS WALL

DAKAR, Senegal – Being a transit geek, I was so excited to ride Dakar’s new commuter rail this evening on my last day in Senegal. I had read some articles online indicating the line had opened in mid-January. So you can imagine my despair when I found out the railway is still under construction!

I spent this afternoon visiting Goree Island World Heritage Site. At 6:06 p.m., I was aboard the Coumba Castel ferry waiting for departure. I had a nice visit to the island famous for being a human shipping depot where numerous slaves bound for the Americas were held until their transportation was ready.

The ferry was supposed to leave at 6:00. I was eager to get back to Dakar to ride the new commuter train that I thought had opened three months ago.

There’s 80 minutes of daylight remaining. I’d like to be able to see out the train the places I thought I’d be going by. The train ride was to be my final adventure here in Senegal. Tomorrow morning I am scheduled to take a bus at the gawd-awful hour of 7 a.m. down to The Gambia, where I’ll be spending the next week.

Coumba Castel departed 11 minutes tardy. Just 13 minutes later, we came into the Port of Dakar. It’s another absolutely beautiful day – 73 degrees and very pleasant. I’ve had perfect weather during my week in Senegal. So unlike the hot, humid weather you normally experience when visiting a tropical nation.

Ferry from Goree Island World Heritage Site to Dakar, Senegal

I walked one-fifth of a mile from the port to the central train station, but to my great surprise found it surrounded by barricades and very much still under renovation.

I had read the first segment of the Dakar Regional Express Train (also known as the Train Express Regional or TER for short) to the eastern suburb of Diamniadio opened in January. But apparently, I would later read after today’s misadventure, that was only the first test run, not the beginning of passenger service.

I asked the two train-station security guards, “Where is the new train?” They replied, “Colobane.” I checked the map on my phone and saw that Colobane is a station about two miles to the north. It’s odd the new rail line doesn’t terminate in the city center, I thought as I grabbed a taxi to Colobane (F3,000; $3.43).

The driver dropped me off at this huge, chaotic bus depot. At 7:09 p.m., I had found myself in a big mess. The cab driver came off the highway and went to the left and ended up in this awful traffic jam.

I tried to figure out how the hell to get over to the train station amongst all this bedlam. I went to a pedestrian overpass, only it find it’s closed. What a nightmare. Instead I had to walk back toward the freeway overpass.

The taxi driver should have turned right off the ramp to deliver me to the train station. I wouldn’t have been so irritated if it weren’t for the fact I was running out of daylight. At the time, I thought maybe the last two miles from Colobane to downtown Dakar was still under construction, but the rest of the line was up and running.

I passed through a busy roundabout circled by numerous vendors and pedestrians. It took 10-15 minutes sitting in traffic in the taxi just to get off the highway and then turn the wrong direction through this traffic circle. It’s fascinating to see all this; just wish I weren’t running short on daylight.

I’m Disappointed to Find the New Dakar, Senegal, Commuter Railway Still Under Construction

I could now see one of the trains. I walked over the A1 freeway, wondering why the train is really far away from the bus depot on the other side of the highway. I strolled over the train tracks, but it was difficult to figure out where the station is. I began wondering: Is this station even open?

There’s lots of work going on. Maybe this is why the taxi driver was so confused because it now appears there is no train running here. This bewildered me.

I came to a dirt lot with a gate and trucks – a huge construction site, not a working train station!

Four minutes after sunset at 7:28 p.m., I found one of the brand-new Senegalese trains! It’s just sitting in a maintenance yard, which is very much a work in progress.

I don’t understand how I read several articles online that the first segment opened in January. This station is not even close to being finished! The platforms are still being built. This is not at all what I expected to find. Little did I know train testing began in January, not service. Big difference!

I talked to a couple of security guards at the railyard using Google Translate and told them I wanted to get photos of the new trains. They said that’s fine, and explained the opening is still several months away. How crazy. It was so disappointing not to be able to ride the train.

I was able to wander all over the massive maintenance yard. One train was sitting outside while a few others were inside the shop. what an adventure I ended up having!

After the train debacle, I grabbed a taxi at 7:46 for the 12-minute ride back to the city center. Picked up dinner at Southern Fried Chicken, then returned to my hotel room at 8:27. I walked 5.95 miles today.

Ate dinner and watched “NCIS.” Copied today’s photos and videos, scanned documents, packed, paid my hotel bill, and finished packing. I have to get up at 5:40 a.m. tomorrow for the early bus to The Gambia. Oh that is going to be hell.

Fell asleep about 1:30 a.m. I’ve enjoyed my week in Senegal. Looking forward to a new country tomorrow!