UNRA Yet to Renovate Cracks on Kabale-Katuna Road

Written by on November 22, 2021

Users of the Kabale-Katuna Highway are up in arms against the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) over failure to rehabilitate, cracked parts of the road.

The road that connects Uganda and Rwanda was constructed by Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) a subsidiary of Shikun & Binui (SBI) International Holdings in the 2015/2016 financial year.

However, cracks started emerging on the road in May 2018, especially at, Kyonyo, Kamuganguzi, and Kitumba.   Cracks later emerged at Mayengo in Katuna a few meters to the border.   UNRA only filled only one crack at Kyonyo which had blocked heavy trucks.

This has left road users questioning UNRA’s decision to keep a deaf ear about fixing the cracks. Others allege that UNRA has abandoned the road since, it no longer attracts too much traffic due to the Uganda-Rwanda border closure by Rwandan President, Paul Kagame.

Dickson Niwamanya, the Nyamirima Village youth chairperson in Mayengo parish, Katuna town council says that the state of the road is putting their lives at risk. He wants UNRA to intervene and fix the cracks.

Justus Muhwezi, a taxi driver along, Kabale-Katuna road says that the cracks are affecting smooth traffic flow. He says that the cracks could be a result of water since the road is near the wetland. Muhwezi wonders why both RCC the contractor and UNRA failed to realize that the road is near the wetland and the put culverts.

Praise Ampeire, District Youth Councilor representing Kibuga sub-county and Katuna town council wonders why UNRA has kept a deaf ear on the state of the road.

Engineer Joseph Otim, the Director of Road Maintenance at UNRA calls for patience saying that they are soon signing a contract with the contractor so that the cracks get fixed.

In 2018, Reuben Byaruhanga Tumwebaze, the Director of Roads Infrastructure Protection in UNRA revealed that the contractor is being investigated over the collapse of many parts of the Ntungamo-Kabale-Katuna highway.

Tumwebaze said that that the company only used soil instead of hardcore stones and Asphalt Pavement Reinforcement in many areas prone to landslides to drain water, which compromised the quality of work.

The construction of the Ntungamo-Kabale-Katuna Section cost 198.26 Billion Shillings funded by European Union.


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