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Sections of Mombasa Road reopened

By Hilary Kimuyu September 20th, 2021 2 min read

The Kenya National Highways Authority (Kenha) has given an update of the roads that have been reopened along Mombasa Road to ease traffic in the capital, following complaints from road users.

The roads authority said that the parts which have been reopened for more than a week have seen an improvement in traffic movement as the contractor continues with the construction of the Nairobi Expressway.

Through a public notice released on Monday, Kenha said the sections opened include Imara Daima and the section at Airtel, the opening of lanes that were previously closed at Syokimau and Mlolongo areas.

The authority also said that it had also improved two-directional U-turns at various points such as Mlolongo (Allpacks) and blocking of an illegal U-turns that caused congestion and widening the angles at diversion points to ease vehicle movement.

“The sections of road where traffic congestion could still be experienced, include areas currently under intervention include, GM area where a new footbridge is being installed, Bunyala round about and Uhuru highway where hoisting of the box grinders is still ongoing,” said Kenha.

The JKIA-Mlolongo section will be fully reopened on September 30. The Westlands-James Gichuru section will also be partially reopened on September 30 while the Haile Selassie-UoN roundabout will be reopened on October 15, 2021.

The agency further noted that the elevated sections are about 62.6 per cent complete.

Construction of the Sh62 billion Nairobi Expressway started last year and has come at a cost for businesses and residents along Mombasa Road, with motorists enduring traffic snarl-ups.

On completion, the road will stretch 27km across Nairobi and it is meant to ease traffic flows in and out of the centre of the city.

China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) is building the highway, whose construction is funded by a private company. Moja Expressway, a subsidiary of CRBC, will operate the road for 27 years to recoup funds through toll fees.