EAC Heads of State to Launch Construction of Arusha-Tengeru Dual Carriageway and Arusha Bypass Road
His Excellency Dr. John Pombe Magufuli, President of The United Republic of Tanzania and his counterpart from the Republic of Kenya, His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta will on Thursday 3rd March, 2016 do the ground-breaking of the construction of the Arusha - Tengeru Dual Carriageway and Arusha Bypass Road at Tengeru, in Arusha Region, Tanzania. The historic event will be witnessed by the other Members of the Summit of Heads of State from the Republics of Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda.
The road is part of the Multinational Arusha - Holili/Taveta - Voi Road, which is a successor to the Arusha - Namanga - Athi River road that was completed in 2012. It forms part of the larger East African Road Network consisting of 15,000 km of international highways, and part of the Trans African Highways (TAH) No. 8 from Cape Town to Cairo via Gaborone.
Work on the Kenyan section of the project, from Taveta to Mwatate, commenced in May, 2014 and was launched in September, 2015 by H.E. Dr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, the then President of The United Republic of Tanzania and H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Republic of Kenya, at Taveta in Taita Taveta County.
The scope of the construction consists of upgrading from gravel to bitumen surface of 90km of the road, part of which traverses the Tsavo West National Park. The finished road will have a 7-m wide carriageway and 2-m wide shoulders on both sides. There will also be a 9-km long bypass around Taveta Town to reduce congestion and enhance road safety in the town. It is expected that travel time will be reduced from 4 hours to 1.5 hours along this stretch.
The scope on the Tanzanian section, which commenced in June, 2015, includes the upgrading of the current two-way, 13-m wide road to a four-lane, 26-m wide highway from Sakina to Tengeru, a distance of 14 km. Service roads will be provided on both sides to facilitate the movement of local traffic. New bridges will be constructed alongside the existing ones on the new road. It is scheduled for completion in March, 2018.
The Arusha Bypass consists of a 42.4 km long bitumen road that commences at Ngaramtoni, crosses the Dodoma Road at Kisongo and ends at Usa River Township. The road is expected to relieve the busy Moshi - Arusha road and will facilitate the traffic from Mombasa port wishing to join the Central Corridor at Singida. It will also spur growth of the greater Arusha city and thereby help to decongest the Central Business District.
The project on the Kenyan side is estimated to cost US$85 million while the Tanzanian section (dual carriageway and bypass) will cost approximately US$353 million.