This archive report was first published on 21 October 2019.
Published on October 21, 2019, the Nairobi Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project has secured a significant boost with three European financiers committing Sh23 billion (200 million euros) to the project. The European Investment Bank (EIB), European Union (EU), and the French Development Agency will each provide between Sh5 billion and Sh10 billion, with more funding needed to complete the project.
According to Catherine Collin, Head of the EIB Regional Representation in East Africa, the project is complex but a priority for those living in Nairobi. "Next week we’ll have colleagues around to do an initial assessment on the BRT Line 3 together with the EU and the French Development Agency. It’s quite a complex project but those of us living here know it’s a priority," she said.
The BRT system aims to improve Nairobi’s chaotic public transport, which is estimated to cost the Kenyan economy Sh100 billion annually due to traffic jams. The Government has identified five corridors for the establishment of BRT lines, but implementation has been a challenge. Last year, lanes along Thika Highway were demarcated in preparation for the BRT, but the Government has yet to order 64 high-capacity buses from South Africa at Sh1.6 billion.
President Uhuru Kenyatta recently launched the construction of the Sh65 billion JKIA-Westlands Expressway, which will feature one of the BRT lines.
