A section of the Thika Superhighway. [PHOTO/the-star.co.ke]
The government plans to introduce toll stations along five major highways.
In the proposed scheme, motorists will part with between Sh1.20 and Sh3.59 per kilometre of road usage for the next 30 years.
Speaking during an investor meeting at a Nairobi hotel early last week, Kenya National Highways Authority (KENHA) director-general Peter Mundinia said the roads to be affected will include the Nairobi-Mombasa highway, Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit highway as well as a second bridge set to be constructed in Nyali by private investors.
Mundinia however noted that for roads that are already complete such as the Thika Superhighway and the Nairobi Southern Bypass, the government will advertise tenders to have private partners managing them.
“With operation and maintenance, we will require the private partners to undertake continuous maintenance of roads through the life of the contract,’’ said Mundinia.
The Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development says that transport costs account for some 30 per cent of the cost of commodities across the region owing to poor infrastructure and the hours lost in traffic.