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Locals' hopes dashed by potholes on new Kajiado road
When a new tarmac road cutting through five sub-counties in Kajiado was completed three years ago, locals were expecting an economic boom. But that hope is slowly turning into a nightmare.
When a new tarmac road cutting through five sub-counties in Kajiado was completed three years ago, locals were expecting an economic boom.
But that hope is slowly turning into a nightmare. The road is deteriorating at an alarming rate.
Construction of the 230-kilometre road began under the Jubilee government in July 2017 after intense lobbying by political leaders and locals.
It was divided into three sections, each with a contractor to speed up the work.
The first stretch, measuring 70km from Isara-Mashuru to Imaroro shopping centre in Kajiado East sub-county was under the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) category of low volume seal (LVS) paved roads.
The second section of 91km, from Imaroro-Kajiado and from Isinya to Ngong via Kiserian in Kajiado North sub-county, was under the annuity model based on the state's elaborate plans to raise money from the fuel levy.
This section of road was part of then President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration of 80 projects worth Sh1.1 trillion under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, which was meant to speed up road projects and reduce costs.
Also in the same category was the 70km Ngong-Suswa section, which is currently under construction.
With the completion of the major road, investors moved into the area, causing land prices to soar within three months.
Several towns mushroomed along the road due to booming business.
Public service vehicles began plying the route, saving Loitoktok residents time and money that they had previously used to access Kajiado town, the county headquarters, via Mombasa road.
Domestic tourism
For the past three years, domestic tourism has been booming as Kajiado is home to Tsavo East and Amboseli National Parks and several private conservancies.
The new road has served as a connecting route, boosting tourism.
But the road, once called the "magic road" by some locals, is degrading fast, dampening the locals' high spirits.
A spot check by Nation on Saturday revealed that the stretch of the Isara-Mashuru-Imaroro road constructed through the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA), is in a sorry state.
The road is littered with gaping potholes and in some places, the road is completely worn out leaving a thin lane.
Some PSV owners are contemplating ditching the route due to the high costs of maintenance for their vehicles.
"It turns out that this may have been a false hope for Kajiado residents. Is a tarmac road supposed to last for only three years?" wondered Mr John Kimiti, a motorist.
Bypassing the mobile weighbridge
Initially, the road's capacity was 10 tonnes, but river sand trucks are accused of carrying loads above 20 tonnes, sometimes bypassing the mobile weighbridge. A feared cartel of brokers is said to be shielding the truck owners.
The Nation has also learned that the scope of the road work was to see the contractor add a layer of tarmac, but he abandoned the work for three years due to nonpayment.
Several of the Low Volume Seal (LVS) road contractors across the country, who spoke to the Nation in confidence, blamed the government for not paying the contractors for the work done.
"If the government does not pay the contractors, these LVS roads will mean nothing because most contractors lack the financial muscle to continue working for the government that pays with empty promises," said an engineer working with one of the contractors.
In a recent interview with Nation at the Mlolongo weighbridge, Kenha Axle Load senior engineer Kennedy Ndugire said the authority is on high alert to protect the Sh3 trillion national road network from overloaded trucks.
Kajiado-Mashuru-Isara road is among the roads where the authority has raised a red flag over overloaded sand trucks.
"Kajiado-Mashuru-Isara road remains one of the major infrastructure on the verge of being destroyed by a few selfish sand transporters. We are aware that they have been evading the mobile weighbridge but we warn them that heavy fines will make them forfeit their trucks to the state once they are caught due to heavy fines," he warned.
The defiant sand harvesters mostly operate at night to evade the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) weighbridges.
The second and third stretches of the road from Imaroro-Kajiado and Isinya-Kiserian-Ngong respectively under the PPP model are relatively well-maintained, with patches of newly retarmacked sections visible.
Final stretch
The 70-kilometre Ngong-Suswa, which began construction in 2018, is on its final stretch to completion.
Calls and messages sent to Kerra through its communications office were not responded to.
The new road community liaison officer, Mr Richard Sekeyian, stressed the need for the security apparatus to work closely with the road authorities to ensure that the road is protected.
He accused county government enforcement officers manning several roadblocks of working in cahoots with sand brokers to allow overloaded trucks past their roadblocks after receiving bribes.
Locals who spoke to the Nation said despite a handful of some overloaded truck owners being charged in court, more needs to be done to protect the road that was expected to come with a steady economic windfall for them.
