•The Expressway will cut travel time from Rironi to JKIA from three hours to just 20 minutes.
•Motorists will be expected to pay between Sh100 and Sh1,550 in toll charges, depending on the size of the vehicle and the distance covered
Image: CHARLENE MALWA
The construction of the Nairobi Expressway continues to make good progress with completion status currently standing at 95 per cent.
The bulk of the work along the 27.1 km road is said to be complete with the focus shifted to ancillary infrastructure.
Speaking today during an inspection tour on various roads project, Transport CS James Macharia revealed that the game-changing project should be complete next month.
“The main infrastructure is complete but now they are doing ancillary infrastructure, including putting toll stations and street lights to make sure it is done... By end of March, they should be done,” he said.
The expressway starts at Mlolongo and passes through the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and Nairobi’s CBD ending at Westlands along Waiyaki Way.
The CS further revealed that after completion, the government will conduct test runs in April ahead of the commissioning of the expressway by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
“Once we are done with the test run, the expressway will now be ready for commissioning for the public to enjoy its service,” Macharia added.
Image: CHARLENE MALWA
On December 23, 2021, President Uhuru Kenyatta laid the last box girder along the main carriage of the Nairobi Expressway, an indicator that the complex work of the project had been completed.
Last month, the contractors started tarmacking various sections of the expressway and also waterproofing.
Currently, the contractors are planting the vegetation along the pillars supporting the expressway.
The highway will have a four-lane and six-lane dual carriageway within the existing median of Mombasa Road, Uhuru Highway, and Waiyaki Way as well as 10 interchanges.
The CS noted that the ministry will be conducted in key infrastructure projects in the road sector after every two weeks to ensure they are completed on time.
“We are very keen to ensure that the projects, which have been started, are completed because mwananchi needs these roads for connectivity and economic development,” Macharia added.
The Nairobi Expressway is the first expressway built in East and Central Africa and the second largest toll road in Africa after the Dakar Toll Highway.
The double-decker road is the equivalent of having half of the Thika Superhighway suspended above Uhuru highway and the city's main traffic artery.
The expressway will cut travel time from Rironi to JKIA from three hours to just 20 minutes.
Motorists will be expected to pay between Sh100 and Sh1,550 in toll charges, depending on the size of the vehicle and the distance covered
The Sh72 billion project is a public-private partnership with no debt incurred by the government.
China Communications Construction Company, the parent firm of China Road and Bridge Corporation, is funding and building the highway.
Initially, the project was to take three years but the government shortened it to one and a half years, with contractors working 24 hours on site.
According to the Ministry of Transport, the Expressway is the most sophisticated infrastructure project the government has ever done due to its location and its impact.
The benefits include improved connectivity for transport of goods, services and people between Nairobi and the Northern Corridor.
Some 6,000 people have also been employed since construction started in July 2020.