There are 63,575 kilometers of classified roads and 114,225 kilometers of unclassified roads in Kenya’s current road network. Only around 16,902 kilometers of the total 177,800 kilometers of road networks, both classified and unclassified, are paved. Vision 2030 has identified a total of 5,681 kilometers of this road network for various interventions such as repairing, dividing, resealing, and tarmacking. Furthermore, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure has been implementing an ambitious road annuity program since 2014, which will see the building of 10,000 kilometers of road and the promotion of primary growth sectors through contractor-facilitated financing arrangements. The program’s initial acceptance was slow due to high finance rates charged by banks, but it now appears to be gathering up momentum after banks and the GOK reached an agreement. Additional opportunities exist under the LAPSSET Highway component, which calls for the construction of 1730 kilometers of inter-regional highways between Lamu and Isiolo, Isiolo and Juba (South Sudan), Isiolo and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), and Lamu and Garsen (Kenya) at a cost of $1.4 billion, financed by both public and private funds. The World Bank has authorized a $500 million loan for the development of the 298-kilometer segment between Lokichar and Nakodok, which runs from Isiolo to Moyale.
Kenya will soon reintroduce toll roads with the support of the private sector. The Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit route, Thika Road, Nairobi’s Southern Bypass, Nairobi expressway, and a second Nyali bridge in Mombasa city are currently earmarked for tolling under a PPP scheme. The move is expected to help collect revenue for road infrastructure development and road maintenance. Another PPP toll road in the works is the $650 million JKIA to Westland four-lane expressway, which will have a dedicated lane for large-capacity buses as part of the bus rapid transit (BRT) proposal.
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