The Corporate Services Department through the ICT Division has facilitated training of about 100 Kenya Railways personnel on the uses and operation of the recently acquired SMART POS CS50 ticketing gadgets. The training sessions targeted direct users of the devices. Most of them are Passenger Service Assistants (PSAs) while the rest are ticketing supervisors and cash office personnel.

KR received the new devices towards the end of last year and conducted training sessions in November 2024. Soon after, on 06th December 2024, the devises were officially rolled out and operationalized in MGR passenger services. Refresher training sessions have been conducted from January 15 – 17, 2025 to iron out kinks and enhance knowledge retention among users.

The Communications & Public Affairs Division engaged with concerned parties to gather information about the devices and user experiences.

“We initially conducted User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and trained direct users of the new gadgets in November 2024. We’ve gathered feedback and monitored the user experience ever since the gadgets were enrolled,” said Kelvin Koech, an ICT personnel based at Nairobi Central Railway Station who is among those coordinating the trainings. “The data we collected through monitoring and evaluation informed the training needs to be addressed during the ongoing refresher trainings.” He added.

SMART POS CS50 is a much-appreciated breath of fresh air owing to the relevant innovations that set it apart from previously used ticketing devices. It is being used to generate tickets paid to E-Citizen via M-PESA, point of sale cash purchases, and A-card reloads which enable passengers to prepay tickets for future use. Remarkable features of the gadgets include; biometric log-in which allows registration of users’ fingerprints to restrict access; ticket validation which enables QR Code scanning of tickets to confirm validity; verification of payment through E-Citizen code in case of delays in automatic prompts from M-PESA to passengers’ mobile phones; locking of routes that simplifies ticketing by displaying only the stations along the specific route in transit; processing luggage and parking payment, among other features and capabilities that have enhanced convenience and efficiency.

Joseph Nderitu of Kenya Airports Parking Services (KAPS), the suppliers of this new gadget, conducted both trainings and was glad to share some insight.

“This is a customized device that is unique to Kenya Railways, as in we consulted KR to understand exactly how the organization intends to use the devices, converted the requirements into a functioning system, and then we built this gadget from the ground up. It belongs to KR and not used anywhere else.” Said the trainer Joseph Nderitu. The organization will update the devices based on user feedback as time goes by to enable continuous improvement. “For example, Saturday next week we’ll update the devices to enable Short Message Service (SMS) communication on these devices between PSA’s in far apart coaches.” Joseph divulged.

He further explained the device’s superiority over the 2023 version by highlighting some unique features. “Notable improvements include ARTS (Automated Real-time Ticketing System) for reporting all transactions to the back office/cash office in real time which means truth is factual and verifiable instantly; distributed computing that safeguards the gadget from interruption by power outage; biodata engine which enables log-in in the absence of internet connection; high power retention; secure database whose recorded data cannot be altered; immediate reporting of inappropriate activity on the device to the back office and ICT can secure the device remotely in case of concerns.”

PSAs onboard the trains and those manning customer care desks at the stations expressed their appreciation for the new features and the speedy assistance granted by relevant KR’s ICT and KAPS personnel.

As more and more commuters and long distance passengers embrace train transportation in Kenya due to recent improvements in KR’s passenger services, Kenya Railways continues to put one foot in front of the other to keep up with the rising demand, passenger preferences and technological advancements for competitive, efficient and effective transportation services.