On Tuesday, the Kenya National Highways Authority disclosed plans to introduce toll fees on critical roads if the proposed Road Tolling Policy is developed.
Some of the roads designated for tolling include Thika Superhighway, Nairobi Southern Bypass, Mombasa Southern Bypass, Kenol-Sagana-Marua Road, Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit Highway, and Dongo Kundu Bypass.
Currently, the 27-kilometer Nairobi Expressway is the only toll road in the country. According to the current toll rates, motorists (with saloon cars) entering at Mlolongo and exiting at Nairobi Westlands pays Ksh. 500.
According to a statement on X and Facebook, KeNHA reported that toll fees will be used to repay loans used to construct major roads such as the recently inaugurated Dongo Kundu ByPass.
“This will free money collected from road levy for construction of new roads, expanding our network and improving connectivity across the country,” the statement reads.
KeNHA assured Kenyans that all voices will count when the policy is developed. “KeNHA remains committed to transparency and inclusivity throughout this process and will continue to engage with the public at every stage,” the authority stated.
The development comes amid calls for better debt management and long-term sustainability as the country’s total public debt reached a record mark of Ksh. 11 trillion early this year. However, President Ruto’s Government has continually expressed commitment to infrastructure development as a way of enhancing the livelihood of its people.
The government has increasingly adopted the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model in an effort to avoid taking out loans. Under the PPP model, private investors construct and operate roads for a specified period to recover their investments and get some earnings through road tolling.
The Nairobi Expressway is an example of an infrastructure project undertaken through the PPP model. In 2022, the Chinese firm operating the Expressway collected Ksh. 2 billion in revenue in just 7 months.
However, the introduction of toll fees on major roads is not without controversy. Many Kenyans expressed their discontent with the tolling policy especially due to the recent increase in road maintenance level on fuel to Ksh. 25 to Ksh. 18 by EPRA.
“What about the Road Maintenance levies? I thought it was meant to maintain critical roads. Build new roads and toll, why do you want to toll roads that were built using taxpayer money?.” wrote Sheunda Salim on X (formerly Twitter).
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