The section from Nyayo Stadium through to Museum Hill will be transformed into a decker standard road
The new credit, Finance Minister Njeru Githae said, will fund the National Urban Transport Improvement Project, decongesting traffic on the Northern Corridor Road (from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Westlands) that passes through the city of Nairobi.
The section from Nyayo Stadium through to Museum Hill will be transformed into a decker standard road and there will also be grade separation of all major junctions on Uhuru Highway.
“This project is late by five years. It was supposed to have been completed at the same time as Thika Road. You come all the way from Thika Road and when you reach Museum Hill it becomes a parking lot in the morning,” Githae said.
By-passes are also to be constructed in Kisumu and Meru to ease the traffic flow in the municipalities.
So far the World Bank has advanced a total of Sh85 billion to improve Kenya’s road network and Country Director Johannes Zutt said the new loan will also go towards financing the construction of a new rapid bus transit and a Sh5.7 billion commuter rail in Nairobi.
“We were disappointed that the urban toll road project was not able to proceed as originally planned. We found a solution that will provide a flyover that will carry through traffic across Nairobi without encountering toll booths on the Northern Corridor,” he said.
The Nairobi Urban Toll Road Project involves the construction of an overpass section through Nairobi Central Business District, extension of dual carriageway to the proposed ICT City at Konza, construction of four interchanges, and tolling and maintenance operations for 30 years.
“We were disappointed that the urban toll road project was not able to proceed as originally planned. We found a solution that will provide a flyover that will carry through traffic across Nairobi without encountering toll booths on the Northern Corridor,” he said.
The project would reduce the transportation cost on the Northern Corridor route by 25 percent.
With this financial agreement the World Bank’s total portfolio of advances to Kenya has reached Sh314.9 billion.
The facility will have a 0.75 percent interest rate with a ten year grace period and 30 year repayment period.
