The railway is the fundamental means of transport, especially for freight. It has a substantial contribution to the sustainable economy of the country and the region at large. However, some factors have been affecting the performance of rail operations; especially for freight, to the extent of reducing the modal share from rail to roads. This has been resulting in high road maintenance costs and underutilization of the available capacity in the railway. This research has studied the factors affecting the Tanzanian railway network in the performance of rail freight operations. The focus was on the corridor from Dar es Salaam to Isaka because it serves most of the landlocked countries such as Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, and Eastern DRC. The study used the Performance Measurement theory with the Balanced Scorecard model. Data analysis was done by the Linear Regression statistical method with the aid of SPSS version 20. The results of the study show that derailments, washouts, and rail freight wagons maintenance capacity directly affect the performance of rail freight operations. TRC, therefore, needs to strategize measures for ensuring that derailments and washouts are very much reduced. A plan for quick recovery must be in place in case a derailment or washout happens. Also, TRC should enhance its capacity for maintaining the rail freight wagons to ensure its optimal availability. Railway should be viewed as a potential area for investment because it supports the growth of other sectors as well. If constraints are minimized in the railway system; the performance of rail freight operation will be high and many customers will be attracted to use the railway as a preferred mode of transport, hence, the modal share to the railway will increase.
Freight rail transport governance: An international issue