The Railways Corporation has the second largest network of transport on the African continent as it extends for about 4,750 km.
The railway line is 3.5 ft. wide, with a weight of 90 pounds a yard on branch lines which cover all the country from Port Sudan in the east to Nyala in the west, and from Wadi Halfa in the north to Wau in the south.
Atbara town is regarded as the main seat of workshops, besides five regions meant for supervising and following up work. This is in addition to the branch workshops in Kassala, Kosti, Sennar, Al-Obeid and Al-Rahad. This year (1996) witnesses the centennial anniversary of the establishment of railways in Sudan as the railway lines were first extended when the invading army of Kitchener advanced into the country to destroy the Mahdist state.
The corporation is engaged in transporting passengers, goods, the post and livestock.
Due to the recent developments that have taken place in the country in the transport field, the railway corporation started to work on a commercial basis as work was started on rehabilitating its utilities depending on self resources.

Till the beginning of the 1960s, the Sudan Railways was the only monopoly of the transport market in the country as it was undertaking transporting 85% of export and import goods annually, besides transporting passengers to all parts of the country.
However, the corporation witnessed in the mid-1970s a severe deterioration in its services due to the setting-up of national highways (Port Sudan-Kassala-Gadarif-Khartoum) and (Sennar-Kosti-Medani highway) which were influential in reducing the transport of passengers and goods by railways.
Added to this is the falling rate of operation and performance of the railways corporation as 40% of its transport capacity was out of service, along with the severe negligence that crippled the corporation due to political purposes and motives. So the focus was laid on land roads only for transport purposes.
The end of the 1970s also witnessed the beginning of the economic deterioration, a matter which rendered the provision of hard currency, impossible for the implementation of programs of replacement in the corporation and the rehabilitation of its utilities and infrastructure.
Under these circumstances, the railways corporation witnessed a severe deterioration as the amount of transported tonnage was drastically reduced reaching 592,000 tons in 1989/90. The kilometres/tons also fell from 2,683,000 in 1970/71 to only 551,000 in 1989/1990.
On top of that, there was financial collapse crippling the corporation's budget as the deficit reached Ls. 146,40 million in 89/1990.

1. The writing-off of the railways corporation's debts towards the government and the Central Bank.
2. Allowing the railways administration freedom to take decisions and implement plans and programs.
3. Resorting to operating on a commercial basis by introducing a suitable estimation of tariffs to meet the cost incurred and achieve a surplus for financing the corporation's development projects utilizing its own resources.

1. The number of locomotives working on the longitudinal railway lines rose from 34 to 55 and maneuvering locomotives from 7 to 11.
2. Importing 10 locomotives and manufacturing 30 animal carriages.
3. The transported tonnage and the kilometre/tons rose from half a billion to two billion.
4. Achieving a surplus of 422 million Sudanese Dinars, compared to 5 million Sudanese Dinars as deficit.
5. Constructing Al-Obeid refinery line, Al-Mujlad-Abu Jabra line, seven bridges on the western railway line and 80 others on the mainline.
6. Renewing Al-Mujlad-Babnousa line.
7. Finalizing surveying and designing work on Saloum-Sawakin line.
8. Installing fax sets in key railway stations.
9. Implementing the job structure and terms of service in the Corporation.

1. Rehabilitating locomotives and maneuvering locomotives, goods and passenger carriages and tankers.
2. Rehabilitating and modernizing workshops as well as providing spare parts.
3. Maintaining affected regions on key lines.
4. Rehabilitating bridges and reconstructing other ones on main lines.
5. Completing transformation of Khartoum-Obeid line to 90 pounds.
6. Purchasing locomotives, maneuvering locomotives, goods and passenger carriages and tankers.
7. Starting measures to asphalt Khartoum-Port Sudan line.
8. Providing equipment to maintain railway lines.
9. Preparing studies for the establishment of factories to produce concrete flank bars surfaces.
10. Setting up infrastructure projects, training cadres and regulating information.
11. Modernizing communications along main lines.