The Kenya Urban Roads Authority (Kura) has awarded a Spanish firm a Sh3.2 billion tender to design and construct an interchange on the junction of Ngong Road and Naivasha Road, in a bid to ease traffic congestion at the busy intersection.
Madrid-based Centunion, which recently completed the construction of the T-Mall flyover on Lang’ata Road, expects to start on the new project situated next to the Junction Mall in June, and will take about six months to complete the works.
The firm has also put up footbridges along Lang’ata Road and Raila Odinga Way.
The project is being funded through a bilateral financial agreement between Spain and Kenya, in form of a 35-year concessionary loan that carries a 20-year grace period and an interest rate of 0.01 percent.
“I have seen the excellent work Centunion Company has done to improve T-Mall Junction and the construction of five footbridges along Mbagathi [Raila Odinga] Way and Lang’ata Road. I look forward to the commencement of the project,” said Transport Cabinet secretary Kipchumba Murkomen on Monday.
“A concessionary loan at 0.01 interest rate for a repayment period of 35 years is a plus for our country especially now that we have budgetary constraints.”
The interchange is expected to improve traffic flow along Ngong Road, which has since 2016 undergone expansion into a dual carriageway and seen the link to nearby roads such as the Southern Bypass improved.
The road was upgraded in three phases, partially funded through a grant by Japan under its Economic Co-operation Programme Project.
World Kaihatsu Kogyo Company Ltd, a Japanese firm, undertook work on the first phase spanning 2.5km between the Kenya National Library and Prestige Plaza.
The segment was completed in December 2017 at a cost of Sh1.3 billion.
The second phase, also financed by Japan, spanning four kilometres from Prestige Plaza to Dagoretti Corner, was completed in April 2019 by the same Japanese contractor at a cost of Sh2 billion.
The 9.8 kilometres, Sh2.3 billion third phase from Dagoretti Corner to Karen Shopping Centre was funded by the government and was done by Chinese firm Quinjian International Group (K) Limited.
