The government will need at least 15 years and Sh100 billion to fully implement reliable bus rapid public transport.
At least Sh100 billion will be required to open five Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridors, build stations and expand the roads to accommodate both pedestrians and cyclists.
The time-line and figures were arrived at by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, a global organisation that advises governments on implementing BRT.
Its Africa programme director Christopher Kost said the project requires expanding existing roads, installing supporting infrastructure and acquiring high-capacity buses.
He said the city needs about 100km of BRT line to handle more than three million people using public transport.
“The government will be forced to look for partners and sign contracts for funding. This will take a long time but may be hastened if there is political will,” Kost said.
In the meantime, the city is developing light rail transport because it already has rails and land.
Last week, the European Union pledged a Sh5 billion grant to implement the project. It is expected to revive the Sh7 billion project that stalled four months ago over lack of funds. The national and county governments will pay the remaining Sh2 billion to develop and instal BRT supporting infrastructure.
Nairobi Transport executive Mohamed Dagane said the grant will implement BRT Line 3.
It will run from Githurai through Thika Road to Moi Avenue in the CBD and terminate at Kenyatta National Hospital.
Line 1 will run from James Gichuru on Waiyaki Way to JKIA and will cover 20km. BRT Line 2,which is 31km, will run from Lang’ata Road to Ruiru. Line 4 will cover 14km from T-Mall to Jogoo Road and Line 5 will run on the Outering Road.
Other vehicles such as private cars and low-capacity PSVs will be barred from using BRT lanes. The aim is to ensure that high-capacity buses do not encounter traffic snarl-ups.
Kost yesterday said expanding roads will be a problem as most land set aside has been encroached upon.
He said only Thika Superhighway and the newly built Outering Road will not require expansion.
They already have lanes that can easily be dedicated to BRT high-capacity buses. “It will also take time to incorporate current industry players into the new system because here we expect resistance,” he told journalists at Mirage buildings.
Last month, Transport CS James Macharia admitted implementation will take longer than expected because of encroachment of road reserves.
In June, the CS said it was hard to implement BRT as Nairobi lacks adequate space. He cited poor planning that never dedicated a land for buses.
But he said the ministry intends to create the Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority to address public transport problems.
The government had in April announced that Thika Road will have a dedicated lane for public service vehicles.