Although Morogoro had developed well, it was only a minor interlude in this journey. As a city not far from First Town, Ernst had plenty of time to inspect Morogoro. In fact, he had already inspected it twice before, though the last visit had been in 1888, when Morogoro had clearly not yet developed to its present level.
The train did not stop at Morogoro, instead continuing toward its next stop, Dodoma city. Passing through the Udzungwa Mountains, the railway began to detour northeast before transitioning onto the East African Highlands. Because the northwestern slopes were gentler, the Central Railway had originally adopted the Northern Front plan.
The southern plan would have run directly from Morogoro to Iringa city and then straight to Mbeya, but that would have bypassed Dodoma city. Therefore, the East African Ministry of Railways had chosen the Northern Front plan out of consideration for Dodoma city and Plateau Province.
However, that decision was later proven correct. With the opening of the Bujumbura-Dodoma railway, the Great Lakes Region became more closely connected to the eastern economy as well.
As for the southern plan, it was not without merit. It could greatly shorten the distance between Dar es Salaam and Mbeya, so when the East African railway was expanded in the future, a railway from Morogoro to Iringa city would certainly be built.
Dodoma.
Ernst got off the train here. The train would make a brief stop, and Dodoma city, now the provincial capital of Plateau Province, had developed to roughly the same level as First Town. As the fourth-largest economic city on the East African Highlands, Dodoma naturally could not compare with Nairobi, Mwanza, or Kisumu. Yet as one of the nation's railway hubs, Dodoma's economy could still rank among East Africa's top ten.
Especially after