Nakuru town is set to undergo a major transformation following a multi-billion-shilling deal inked between the national government and the county government for the development that will change the town to a city status.
Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui confirmed the report and said a number of projects will be undertaken which could drastically change the face of Rift Valley’s capital. He pointed out that the devolved unit has begun physical planning for the entire town with eyes set on city status.
Project details
The four projects include a Sh 600m ultra-modern market, a modern bus terminus, and a four-kilometre bypass that will run from Nakuru’s Free Area to the lower side of Nakuru town near Kingdom Seekers Church, before re-joining the Nakuru-Eldoret highway.
Additionally, the national government will also build an elevated highway from the place near State House Nakuru to Eveready, along the busy Nakuru-Eldoret highway. The ultra-modern market will sit on a 10-acre piece of land along Nakuru’s Landhies Road, which currently hosts a slaughter house and a fire station.
According to the State Department of Housing and Urban Development, the market will be constructed by the national government and already tendering for the project has been done. The contractor will be on site next week to begin work.
Rironi-Nakuru-Mau Summit highway
Next to the market will be the new modern bus terminus with a capacity of at least 450 vehicles. The bypass and the elevated highway on the other hand will be constructed simultaneously with the dualling of the Rironi-Nakuru-Mau Summit highway. It will be a 4km elevated highway through Nakuru town.
The Rironi-Nakuru-Mau Summit highway will be built by a French company and overseen by the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) through a public-private partnership (PPP) model that will involve tolls.
The highway is one of the largest PPP projects in Eastern Africa. The President signed the deal in France with the VINCI Consortium comprising VINCI Highways SAS, Meridian Infrastructure Africa Fund (Miaf), and VINCI Concessions SAS. The current two-lane highway will be expanded into a four-lane dual carriageway that will be further expanded to six lanes on the busiest sections.
