The Democratic Republic of the Congo (capital: Kinshasa) should not be confused with the Republic of the Congo (capital: Brazzaville)
The first railway in what was then the Belgian Congo (at the time a new country, created from the former Congo Free State) was an 800km line opened around 1910 from Bukama, in the copper producing region of Katanga, to the Rhodesian border at Sakania. There, it connected with lines constructed by the British, which by that date allowed through traffic all the way to the Cape of Good Hope.
The gauge of the Katanga Railway was 3ft 6in (1067mm), the same as that used in Rhodesia. Subsequent development in the south east of the country was to the same gauge, most notably the Benguela Railway, which opened from Lobito in Angola to the border town of Dilolo in 1929, although it was another 2 years before the line was completed to its junction with the existing railway at Tenke.
Elsewhere in the country, a number of isolated groups of lines sprang up with various gauges, 600mm, 765mm, 1000mm and 1067mm. Some of these lines were effectively portage routes to avoid difficult sections of river navigation. Almost all of these have subsequently closed.
The original main line forms the core of a network of 1067mm gauge lines in the south east of the country around 3600km in extent. 858km of the line from the Zambian border is electrified. The lines are operated by SNCC. Passenger services operate on many of the lines but may be infrequent.
The original international connection with Zambia remains open for freight. That with Angola reopened in 2018 after a long period of closure of the Benguela Railway. There are no regular international passenger services, but a luxury cruise train operates on a route connecting Tanzania and Angola via Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
A metre gauge railway, a lone survivor of the original portage routes along the Congo river, runs from Kisangani to Ubundu, a distance of about 125km. SNCC operates mixed (passenger and freight) trains connecting with river boats at Kisangani.
In 2025, SNCC opened the rehabilitated 365km metre gauge railway between the capital, Kinshasa, and the port of Matadi. The line was previously operated by an independent company, but had been out of service for the last 5 years.
Also in 2025, technical studies were repoorted complete for the DRC section of a new standard gauge electrified line, connecting with the existing network at Kindu and running to Gitega in Burundi.
In 2026, contracts were signed for the construction of a 25km light rail metro network serving Kinshasa.
Also in 2026, proposals were invited for the construction of a major road and rail bridge across the River Congo between Kinshasa and Brazzaville, connecting the capitals of the two countries and their associated rail networks. The rail section of the bridge would be of 1067mm gauge, as used by both existing networks, but would include provision for possible future conversion to 1435mm gauge.
© 2006-2026 Glyn Williams
Photo image by Redhonda from Wikimedia Commons