It Will Cost You Ksh 600 Daily To Use Nairobi Express Way

It will cost motorists 600 shillings daily to use Nairobi Express Way upon its completion in an effort to recoup the Government’s investment and make a profit through toll charges.

Nairobi Express Way is set to be a dual carriageway, 27 kilometers long from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to James Gichuru.

According to the government, the Express Way is expected to ease traffic along Mombasa road in an ongoing project to decongest Nairobi roads.

As to whether motorists will be willing to cough out 600 shillings daily to use the road remains unclear although the majority have objected to the idea.

It will cost Sh600 daily to use the Nairobi Express Way once it is done. There will be manual and electronic way of paying. @MaalikaKazia @AginaAby #KTNBUSINESS pic.twitter.com/FVTPsl1Z9R

— KTN News Alerts (@KTNNewsKE) December 4, 2019

The government says Kenyans will not be “forced” to pay the 600 shillings because it will be just for those willing to use the Express Way. According to the government, the 600 shillings will be for those willing and able to pay. The rest will have to use “normal roads.”

A study done in 2015 showed that 61 percent of Kenyans said they were willing to pay a fee to use the by-pass although, with the ongoing economic situation, most Kenyans have disputed the findings of the study.

“It will cost Sh600 daily to use the Nairobi Express Way once it is done”

They’re seriously going to construct this express way for wealthy folk at the expense of already struggling taxpayers while encroaching on Uhuru Park, what a shame.

— Scheaffer Okore (@scheafferoo) December 5, 2019

According to the Director General of Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), Kenyan motorists were willing to pay 6 shillings per kilometer to drive their personal vehicles on the Nairobi Express Way.

“Considering that we are talking about 2015, and now we are in 2019, projected upwards the amount that we are considering to charge translates to 11.25 shillings per kilometer,” he said recently.

Paying The Debt

The government aims at using the amount collected at the Nairobi Express Way to pay the ever-ballooning public debt that has now crossed the 6.5 trillion shilling mark.

The Senate capped the borrowing by the National Government to 9 trillion shillings with experts saying by the time Uhuru Kenyatta will be leaving office, the public debt will be at 7.2 trillion shillings or more.