Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) workers re-carpet and tarmac Museum Hill Road in the Nairobi City centre on February 25, 2021. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

The Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) has started rehabilitating 38 roads in Industrial Area.

The tendering process for the restoration of the roads has begun.

The roads have been categorised into different lots. Homa Bay, Workshop, Pate and Dar es Salaam roads fall under Lot 1. Lot 2 consists of Busia and Kampala roads, while Lot 3 has Gilgil, Bamburi and Changamwe roads. Lot 4 roads are Dakar, Funzi, Athi River and Addis Ababa.

The targeted roads for Lot 5 are Catalysts, Machakos, Baricho and Wundanyi, while those under Lot 6 are Rangwe, Mareba, Hola, Lusingeti and Kitui.

Under Lot 7 are Migwani, Isiolo, Bandari, Wajir, Chogoria and Jirore roads, whereas Lot 8 comprises Butere, Yarrow, Bunyala and Factory Street.

The last lot has Ndume, Nyahera, Runyenje, Lokitaung and Mogadishu roads, and attendant non-motorised transport in the area.

“NMS invites bids from interested and eligible tenderers to submit their bids for the following tenders before March 10, 2021,” said NMS Deputy Director-General Kang’ethe Thuku.

Since its inception a year ago, NMS has actively been engaged in re-carpeting and upgrading city roads.

Completed work

In the Central Business District, the service, under the leadership of Mohammed Badi, has completed works on City Hall Way, Moi Avenue and Wabera Street. Grogon and Kirinyaga roads are nearing completion.

The NMS has also installed infrastructure for non-motorised transport along Kenyatta Avenue, Wabera and Muindi Mbingu streets, which have all been upgraded, and pedestrian and cycle paths constructed.

The development is aimed at providing safe walking and cycling spaces for residents who prefer an alternative to public transport in the capital.

In September 2020, NMS announced that it would hasten road repairs in Nairobi following the completion of a new asphalt (bitumen) plant on Kangundo Road. The plant produces 2,400 tonnes of bitumen daily, an amount enough to re-carpet three kilometres of road.

In collaboration with the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), NMS has started the construction of 408km of access roads in Nairobi's informal settlements. The access roads in the informal settlements within the city will also have walkways and cycle lanes.

KURA further says the Sh5.8 billion venture continues to take shape, with 22km of the access roads already completed.