Editor's Review
CS Chirchir issued the explanation after the October 30 deadline he had initially issued for completion of the project had lapsed.
Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) Davis Chirchir now says that the Rironi-Mau Summit section of the road will be completed by December 2026.
Speaking on October 30, CS Chirchir said that the project ha delayed due to interruption in the supply of bitumen, a component that is critical in road construction.
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He added that the US-Iran conflict led to a disruption in supply, which increased the cost of bitumen by more than two fold.
"We have had challenges with the Strait of Hormuz. You know bitumen is a petroleum product comes from Iran, We have a challenge of bringing the small quantities because the price has gone up from Ksh90 a kilo six months ago to Ksh200 a kilogram today," the CS said.
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The Transport CS added that the government and contractor are working on a plan to mitigate the high costs and ensure that the delay in completing the project is resolved.
"If we consolidate and bring an entire vessel under the framework I have just talked about, we should be able to manage the cost of building our roads.
"We wan to still urge the contractor to keep the promise and ensure that by December, this road is fully open for traffic," he explained.
CS Chirchir issued the explanation after the October 30 deadline he had initially issued for completion of the project had lapsed.
Locals and businessmen along the road project raised complaints about its stalling. They claimed that the road deviations had undermine the ease of doing business.
The construction of the Rironi-Mau Summit road project was launched by President William Ruto in November 2025.
The project, which is being implemented through a Public-Private Partnership between CRBC and NSSF, will be constructed over two years at a cost of $863 million (Ksh170 billion), followed by a 30-year operation period.
