Kampala-Jinja road is one known for being crowded with traffic queue, costing the journey of 1 hour into a 3 to hours’ drive. The journey from Kampala to Jinja is a 96km distance which is destined to take about 2hours and 30 minutes. However, the narration has surged and expect more than 4 hours to drive from Jinja reaching to Kampala.
The issue for this delayed traffic on road has continually been caused by road potholes, and narrow road. The pothole issue has as well caused a lot of accidents and vehicle breakdowns.
However, this is almost being eliminated has Uganda National Roads Authority UNRA is to revamp the state of the road starting this November. This maintenance of the highway of the road is to draw a lot of the traffic chaos along the road.
The road repair is expected to last until December 7, 2024, and traffic along this road section will be restricted to one lane during the repair works. The more traffic drama is expected to continue through the Mabira forests about 45km.
Alternatives
Traveling through the forest during the maintenance times, driving through Mabira forest, there will be one lane used by all side of the drivers. There is a predication of a long queue of driving throughout the forest.
So, when driving from Kampala to Jinja or either way, then there are two alternatives to use. However, these alternatives have been used by some drivers for the matter of easiness on traffic crowd.
UNRA advised motorists to consider alternative routes during this period, where heavy vehicles are recommended route for heavy vehicles is the Mukono-Kyetume-Katosi-Kisoga-Nyenga/Njeru road. And light vehicles drivers advised to use the Njeru-Kayunga-Mukono/Kalagi-Gayaza route to Kampala.
“Traffic Police and our project safety team will be on-site to assist road users,” the notice stated.
The Mabira section of the Kampala-Jinja highway has been in a deteriorated state for years, with potholes and damaged surfaces contributing to frequent accidents and vehicle breakdowns.
UNRA spokesperson Allan Ssempebwa noted that the repairs would be conducted by the agency’s in-house road construction and maintenance teams.
The planned repairs come amidst growing frustration over delays in the rehabilitation of the Kampala-Jinja highway.
In 2020, Energoprojekt, a contractor, was awarded an Ush 82 billion contract to rehabilitate the road, with work beginning in July 2021. However, the project stalled at Namagunga, leaving significant portions of the highway in poor condition.
The rehabilitation project scope includes resurfacing 45.4 km of road with new asphalt concrete, pothole repairs, reworking shoulders, and improving drainage systems, including the construction of three new box culverts and 16 pipe cross culverts.
UNRA has remained tight-lipped on the status of the stalled contract, with Ssempebwa declining to provide further details when questioned about the contractor’s role, simply stating that the contractor is still around.
Energoprojekt previously attributed the delays to heavy traffic, which hindered productivity during the day. However, no visible progress has been made since the work halted over a year ago.
As the repairs on the Mabira section begin, UNRA urges road users to exercise caution and follow traffic guidelines. The repairs aim to restore safety and improve traffic flow on one of Uganda’s busiest highways.
