City bypass stirs sleepy region as motorists marvel at peaceful driving

For frequent flyers who use Thika Road to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the fear of missing flights has been a nasty nightmare thanks to perennial traffic jams on the highway and gridlocks within the city centre.

But this is about to change following the partial opening of the Eastern Bypass that connects Thika Road near Ruiru to JKIA.

The link that is estimated to be 80 per cent complete is also catching the attention of opportunity-hunters in the property market, promising to bring life to the once quiet section of the expansive city.

Property developers around Ruiru, about 22km north of Nairobi, say prices have shot up by close to 100 per cent in two years since the bypass construction started.

The bypass is part of a multi-billion shilling road construction project aimed at decongesting the city of Nairobi, whose traffic flow has become unpredictable leading to many lost opportunities.

When he officially launched the construction of the road, President Kibaki said the building of the bypasses had “become more urgent” considering the congestion in the city.

Transport mess

The President said the bypass would only help in the short-term and challenged planners to come up with new ideas to fix the transportation mess in major urban centres.

Workers and traders using the busy Thika Road daily have resigned to fate when it comes to reporting to work.

However, the situation is expected to improve in the near future when the ongoing Sh27 billion expansion of the highway is complete.

Motoring consultant Gavin Bennett said in an earlier interview that traffic jams in Nairobi cost the economy Sh100 million daily in lost man-hours, wear and tear, and fuel consumption.

Three bypasses — Eastern, Southern and Northern — were planned to ease congestion by ensuring motorists with no business within the city centre do not drive into the Central Business District.

The Southern bypass is yet to take off the ground because of what sources within the Ministry of Roads attribute to delay in getting a financier.

Eastern and Northern bypasses are expected to cost at least Sh10 billion, of which Sh8.5 billion came from the Chinese government.

On the Eastern bypass, businesses are coming up while people connecting to JKIA are reaping in terms of saved time, reduced pollution, and, for some, stress.