The government of Kenya is set to begin the tarmacking of 24 kilometers Gatuanyaga ring-road in Thika East Sub County from next month. The road will stretch from Muguka-Ngurai-Munyu-Githima-Kang’oki-Kisii and back to the Thika-Garissa highway. It will be a Class B road, measuring 6.5 meters in width with provision for pedestrian walkways and a lane for cyclists.
The over US$ 9M project will be executed by Inter-Works limited within a span of 30 months.
The first tarmac road in Thika East Sub County
Speaking during a public participation meeting organized by Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), Thika Town MP Patrick Wainaina revealed that this is the first time the area, and by extension, Thika East will have a tarmac road other than the Thika-Garissa Highway.
He commented on the government’s efforts saying that the project will open up and ease accessibility in the area. “After the completion of the project, expect land prices to triple due to its accessibility to Thika town,” said Wainaina.
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The MP also mentioned that once completed, street lights will be erected along the newly upgraded road to enhance security, adding that 30 percent of jobs in the project implementation phase will be given to locals.
A call to intruders to vacate the road corridor
Patrick Wainaina at the same time called on those who have encroached the road corridor to vacate, warning that all structures along the road will be pulled down to allow a smooth implementation of the project.
This comes at a time when some residents complained that the road designs cut across some of their plots and called for a revision of the designs. In that regard, the MP affirmed that “the designs can’t be contested” and insisted that they pull down their structures for they will be destroyed once the construction works kicks off.
