Following a strict seven-day ultimatum issued by the minister for Works and Transport, Fred Byamukama, the Namungoona-Bwaise section of the Kampala Northern Bypass has turned into a hive of activity, with construction now continuing day and night.
The contractor, Stirling Civil Engineering Limited, has introduced a 24-hour working schedule to complete the final stages of the Shs 67 billion project.
The remaining works include repairing the last damaged sections of the road, installing street lights and carrying out eight kilometres of routine maintenance on the Kireka to Namugongo section.
The contractor’s final push comes after months of delays caused by difficult ground conditions and rising costs of construction materials.
One of the biggest challenges was that the bypass carries thousands of heavy international cargo trucks every day. Since the road was originally built across swampy ground, the weight of the trucks weakened and damaged the road foundation over time.
To solve the problem, Stirling had to excavate the entire damaged road base and rebuild it with a much stronger foundation while ensuring traffic continued to use the road.
The project was also affected by global economic pressures.
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East disrupted international supply chains, leading to shortages and sharp increases in the prices of diesel and bitumen, the main material used in road surfacing.
Despite these challenges, the contractor says it chose to absorb the extra costs instead of compromising on quality.
The project’s site engineer, Babiha Richardson, said the company remained committed to delivering a durable road despite the difficult global market.
“It must be noted and appreciated that despite the increase in prices and the scarcity of bitumen and diesel on the world market because of the war, Stirling is committed to delivering quality products as usual,” Richardson said.
The improvements are already being noticed by road users and business owners who depend on the bypass every day.
Many say potholes have disappeared and the condition of the completed sections has greatly reduced vehicle maintenance costs.
Namukasa Prudence, who operates a regional cargo transport company and regularly uses the bypass, welcomed the improvements.
“The changes made on the Northern Bypass are greatly appreciated. The completed sections show better service delivery to Ugandans, and my vehicle maintenance costs have drastically reduced because of this work,” she said.
Taxi driver Ismail Senkuba also praised the contractor’s work.
“Before the contractor started these works, the road had many potholes and was in a very poor condition. Today we are happy because we can see a much better road,” he said.
Although the project is now approaching completion, experts say maintaining the road will be just as important as building it.
They are calling on the government to adopt what engineers describe as the “1:5 rule” of routine road maintenance.
Under this approach, spending a relatively small amount of money on routine maintenance such as clearing drainage channels and sealing small cracks can prevent major road failures that would require expensive reconstruction in the future.
The experts argue that preventive maintenance is far cheaper than allowing roads to deteriorate before carrying out major repairs.
With Stirling expected to hand over a significantly improved road despite difficult economic conditions, attention is now turning to the government’s ability to provide reliable and continuous funding for routine maintenance.
