According to Kenya’s Transport Cabinet Secretary Mr James Macharia, the World Bank has signed a KES 38 Billion financing deal that will see the construction of Kenya’s first elevated highway connecting Jomo Kenyatta Airport through Nairobi to Nakuru.
Speaking in Nairobi at State House Summit on Transport and Infrastructure held on Monday, Mr James Macharia said that construction is expected to begin in the course of the year or early next year with final touches being made on the project’s terms and conditions and also to enable incorporation of the African Development Bank which had expressed interest in regards to Funding of the project.
The deal has been on the table for about 10 years now, but the World Bank back then pulled out of the project citing the sincerity of an Austrian construction company which had won the tender to build and maintain the road.
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According to the Director General of Kenya National Highways Authority Mr Peter Mundinia, construction of the first phase of the project has already been given to China Wu Yi, the chinese company that built Thika Road.
According to the Business Daily, the road will have some special features including a dedicated lane for well-organised, large-capacity buses under the bus rapid transit (BRT) plan that is aimed at improving public commuter service and easing congestion.
Mr Macharia also said that the Kenyan government had also secured funding from the African Development Bank for the construction of a second runway at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport which will enable planes avoid queuing before take-off.
