A video has emerged of President William Ruto driving himself along the busy Nairobi-Nakuru Highway.
The undated clip showed the president cruising the highway smoothly while behind the wheel of the SUV.
During his ride, the president made a commentary on the state of the Nairobi-Nakuru Highway, which he noted had inconvenienced Western Kenya-bound traffic for a long time.
The president said the recent launch of the dualling of the road last month was long overdue, saying it will solve the traffic challenges on the trunk road.
Ruto promised that with the works already underway, the traffic will easily flow late next year.
He said this year's festive season would be the last one in which travellers from Nairobi suffer on the road because of the traffic gridlock.
He acknowledged that whilst the road will not be complete by the end of next year, the critical sections where traffic is often reported will be done.
The road is expected to be fully dualised by June 2027.
"The only year people are going to run into trouble the way we've always known this road to be; with heavy traffic, a lot of jam, people spending countless hours on the road, people getting to their homes way after Christmas is just going to be this year. Next year, by December next year, this road will be all clear. It will not be completely done, but the sections that are critical will already be done. And by, as I said, by June 2027, we will have completed this road and the heavy traffic, the many accidents, the wastage of time will be a thing of the past," he said.
The president launched the dualling of the road on November 28.
Prior to the launch, he held discussions with senior officials from China Communications Construction Company (CCCC).
Its subsidiary, China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), has been tasked with executing the works.
Ruto also disclosed that another key stretch of the highway will undergo expansion at the same time.
Separately, the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) confirmed that negotiations are in their final stages with two firms set to spearhead the Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit and Rironi–Maai Mahiu–Naivasha highway projects.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, November 5, Acting Director General Luka Kimeli noted that KeNHA had adhered to all requirements of the Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) Act during the evaluation and submission of proposals for the project.
“KeNHA assessed the Project Development Phase submissions in line with Section 43(9) of the Public-Private Partnerships Act, Cap 430, and forwarded the Evaluation Report to the PPP Directorate for review and recommendation to the PPP Committee,” the statement read.
Kimeli added that the PPP Committee endorsed the evaluation findings, designating CRBC and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) Consortium as the preferred bidders.
