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Nairobi Overpass

15K views 55 replies 28 participants last post by  Kenguy 
#1 ·
Kenya, Japan to fund Nairobi overpass to decongest CBD

The government is set to construct an overpass to link Enterprise Road to Nairobi Central Business District.

The overpass also known as a viaduct — a long bridge-like structure, typically a series of arches, carrying a road or railway across a valley or other low ground— will fly over the railway yard at the Nairobi Central Railway Station.

The project is a collaboration between Kenya and Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) and will be undertaken by Kenya Urban Roads Authority (Kura), who are the implementing agency.

2030 MASTER PLAN
Kura acting director general Silas Kinoti, in a statement, said that the project was identified in the Nairobi Integrated Urban Development Master Plan 2030 as a priority project to reduce traffic congestion within city centre and divert traffic from Mombasa Road.

“At the same time it is intended to go a long way in expanding the CBD as well as alter permanently the Nairobi city centre landscape and give it a modern look,” said Mr Kinoti on Tuesday.

Mr Kinoti said several studies have been conducted in compliance with relevant Kenyan laws and JICA environmental and social safeguard guidelines.

RELOCATIONS
He said feasibility studies, environmental and social impact assessment and ongoing resettlement action plan (RAP) are being conducted by a JICA commissioned study team

“So far, several consultative meetings …have been held with stakeholders including the Muthurwa Estate residents as part of the ongoing RAP process,” he said.

The Kura boss said, according to feasibility studies conducted in 2016, a section of the viaduct would be constructed on land currently occupied by Wakulima market but several other options have been identified to ensure traders are not disenfranchised during the construction period.

He said Muthurwa Estate was identified as an alternative site for relocation of the market during consultations with various stakeholders including representatives of the Wakulima market traders, Nairobi City County government, Kenya Railways Staff Retirement Benefits Scheme (KRSRBS) and Kura.

“The Project planning and study activities are part of an ongoing process that will give recommendations and inform stakeholders including the government of Kenya and JICA on the project’s viability,” he said.
https://www.nation.co.ke/counties/nairobi/Nairobi-set-to-get-rail-flyover/1954174-4667852-okwuy3z/index.html

I hope this project is large enough to warrant its own thread. Also, apparently the KURA upper brass think building overpasses through the heart of the city will give it a "modern look". It's no wonder with clowns like these at the helm, things as basic as having proper sidewalks on the Upper-hill roads are not performed :bash:
 
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#39 ·
Well we cannot conclusively say if the overpass is worth the Kshs 10B because we are not experts and do not know all the exact details and cost implications and do not have the bill of quantities.However it feels like the money could be better spent on on other roads as mentioned here to get better value for the money
 
#43 · (Edited)
You are right on your first point. It's better to make judgement if the proposed figure is too much without evening having all the details. For instance we have a clue the project also involves constructing a new wakulima market and moving traders to the new one. There could also be link roads to connect to this new overpass.

On the second point, someone can feel that this money can used for another project however consider that this overpass is part of a wider project that JICA is involved in creating missing links to the CBD to a new future CBD node.The new node "Green mall project" is where the current Railway yards are located and this overpass is vital component for that whole project. JICA is only funding projects on programs that they are involved in and this program for supporting Nairobi country is a long term one. Its not like guys at KURA decided that they need this overpass, decided how much it would cost and approached JICA to fund it. JICA funded study on improving the city and JICA experts saw that this overpass is one of the missing links that is needed and they agreed to fund it as part of the whole project.
 
#40 · (Edited)
Can see why many here feel sh10billion is too expensive for this. Thika road is about 40miles ? The cost was about 50Blillio with all the bridges, underpasses, very expensive land acquisition e.t.c. Yes, we can add inflation but it still makes this bridge too expensive. If the Japs are lending most of the cash, the inflated costs and interest makes it even more expensive unless the overpass shall be gold-plated IMO.
 
#42 · (Edited)
^^
If Thika road was only sh28 billion, sh.10 billion for this overpass sounds like something coming from someone whose head should be examined. Then again, this is Kenya. Kenya is a very expensive place compared to anywhere else in the world . It happens to be the place where some wheelbarrows ware costing more than sh.100,000 each in one of the Counties only a while back ?. Well,I suppose those came with antilock braking systems and intelligent air suspension systems .:)
 
#46 · (Edited)
@sleekpiano I agree with you with what Japan through JICA are doing in identifying missing links and funding them.They are doing a good job on that.Those missing links are necessary and really helping.Is this a loan or grant?I believe it is a loan but what if it was a grant would they give that much?The land to where wakulima market is to be moved belongs to Railway Pension Scheme and is to be purchased from them which I think could be one of the reasons for the high cost
 
#48 · (Edited)
From the artist's render , it does not seem like this is 700m only. The longest span is 700m and people have taken that to be the length of the project, considering our media isnt really a pinnacle of reporting accuracy.
Thika road ended up being around 45b, shilling was 75 to the dollar and oil per barrel was $30, land was way cheaper then and of course inflation. So considering these factors, how much would have Thika road cost today? 60b?
The render shows that the overpass will start from Moi avenue, turn over railways goes down to wakulima, crossing Railway yard (only this part seems like the 700m by itself) using a suspension bridge? , then continues over enterprise abit. Also there is a leg originating from wakulima to join the overpass , so thats maybe 2-3km total 4 lane road length in the middle of CBD? sh10b is alot but might actually be the cost when we truly know the scope of works.
 
#49 ·
From the artist's render , it does not seem like this is 700m only. The longest span is 700m and people have taken that to be the length of the project, considering our media isnt really a pinnacle of reporting accuracy.
Thika road ended up being around 45b, shilling was 75 to the dollar and oil per barrel was $30, land was way cheaper then and of course inflation. So considering these factors, how much would have Thika road cost today? 60b?
The render shows that the overpass will start from Moi avenue, turn over railways goes down to wakulima, crossing Railway yard (only this part seems like the 700m by itself) using a suspension bridge? , then continues over enterprise abit. Also there is a leg originating from wakulima to join the overpass , so thats maybe 2-3km total 4 lane road length in the middle of CBD? sh10b is alot but might actually be the cost when we truly know the scope of works.

Your numbers are definately off...

The total cost of the project was Ksh 32 billion (US$360 million). Please consult the archive because it's available... Budget was 28B, but ended up going higher by 4Bn...
 
#51 · (Edited)
It seems then it is not just an overpass but the viaduct is the 700m long section of this missing link.I have not had a chance to open the pdf document since I have been using just my phone.That newspaper article is misleading and so is the title of the thread.The economic benefits of this missing link will be more than Kshs 10B in the long run if it solves the problems it is intended to solve in the short,medium and long run including savings in fuel costs,savings on fares through transport costs,increase in economic activity in the city due to time saved moving through the city and more investments and so on.In the end the loan should repay for itself if the cost benefit analysis holds
 
#53 ·
This project is set to commence in the next financial year(July). From the draft budget books it has an allocation of Kshs 3.6 B for 2021/2022 and Kshs 7.6 B in 2022/2023.

The tender was advertised some time in April.
 
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