Construction of the Sh4.5 billion Makupa Bridge is nearly 60 per cent done with the launch set for July. The much-awaited bridge is expected to substantially improve traffic along the busy Mombasa – Nairobi highway. It replaces the 1929 colonial Makupa Causeway, which linked Mombasa island to the mainland.
The 457m bridge is 20 metres wide on each side with a two-metre rail for non-motorised traffic and a pedestrian pathway. It is made from reinforced concrete with foundation pillars of up to 40-metres deep.
The cost of the bridge forms part of the Sh 144 billion that the government has pumped into the road network across the coastal counties. According to Transport and Infrastructure PS Paul Maringa, Sh95 billion was spent locally by purchasing construction materials for these projects.
“Some of the money allocated for these road projects went into the importation of other construction materials,” he said earlier this year during an inspection tour by top Government officials.
