Nairobi light rail to stretch for 8km on three key roads

The light rail tram system planned for Nairobi will run along three roads- Ngong Road, Waiyaki Way and either Thika or Langata Road—for eight kilometres each— as the government moves to ease traffic jam in the city.

Transport Principal Secretary Irungu Nyakera Tuesday said the rail project, totalling 24km, will be built on the road reserves, eliminating the need for costly compensation to private land owners.

President Uhuru Kenyatta last week announced that the Sh15 billion project will be launched by June and will be funded by a Hungarian bank.

“There’s still a bit of work to be done in terms of evaluating the routes, evaluating the traffic and all that before we actually give a timeline for saying we will deliver it on this date,” Mr Nyakera said.

The tram system is meant to serve areas that are currently not served by the existing commuter rail system.

Mr Nyakera did not disclose the Hungarian bank that will finance the project and offered no details on whether there will be tendering or the project will be single-sourced.

The award of the tender for construction of the Sh447 billion Mombasa to Nairobi rail sparked widespread criticism over its costing and tendering.

Officials acknowledge that there was no public bidding, which they say was a condition of Chinese loans to help to fund construction, and some MPs complained that the contract was overpriced.

It is not clear whether Hungary will want to restrict the tender award for the light rail to a company from its country as a condition to providing financing.

Kenya will follow in the footsteps of Ethiopia with the tram service with Addis Ababa betting on the Chinese-funded light train to ease traffic congestion. The Addis Ababa tram was launched last year.

With a growing vehicle population, Nairobi’s roads have become heavily congested, making the project important for unclogging the city.

The tram is part of the city’s rail network improvement which will also see the existing commuter rail upgraded at a cost of Sh12 billion.

Mr Nyakera said the upgrade of the commuter system involves repairs and doubling of the track from Makadara Railway Station to Syokimau.

Currently a double track only exits between the Central Station in the city centre and Makadara.The doubling is expected to allow more trains to run along the line that will become busier once the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is completed mid next year.