This archive report was first published on 13 January 2020.
Published on January 13, 2020, the Ksh5.8B Likoni cable car project has hit a snag after the Senate Roads and Transport committee rejected it.
The committee, led by Chairperson Kimani Wa Matangi, deemed the project unviable due to unsustainable user charges for foreign and tourist commuters, which fell far below comparable international charges.
The committee also questioned the basis for the Ksh20 user charge, set by Kenya Ferry Services (KFS) and the Transport Ministry, and expressed doubts about the capacity of Trapos Limited to undertake the project.
They asked KFS to provide evidence of similar projects undertaken by the firm, further delaying the project.
The Likoni Cable Express was initially approved by the cabinet in August 2018 but has since stalled due to disagreements between KFS and the Kenya National Highway Authority (KenHa).
Under the proposed public-private partnership arrangement, the project was expected to take 12 to 18 months to complete, reducing crossing time to three minutes and forty seconds and ferrying 5500 passengers per hour using 28 cabins.
However, the project's fate remains uncertain, with the committee's rejection casting a shadow over its future.
