Roads Authority (RA) says it is working on detailed designs for the development of more dual carriageways to improve the capacity of roads in the country’s cities.
RA chief executive officer Emmanuel Champiti said in an interview that the authority wants to see modern roads that are wider to help address traffic congestion, and durable to reduce maintenance costs.
He said: “We want roads that will take at least 15 years before experiencing defects. Once we are done with detailed designs, the country will see construction of modern roads in all the cities. If you remember, we upgraded the Masauko Chipembere Highway in Blantyre a few years ago and that was the starting point. In Mzuzu, we upgraded the highway as part of capacity improvement.
“Lilongwe, being the capital city, is having quite a lot of pressure in terms of traffic, so we have handled the three roads simultaneously to address the pressure in traffic, reduce traffic jams.
“As we are doing these projects, we have other projects where we have done feasibility studies and we are doing detailed designs. You will be able to see such projects happening in Lilongwe and other cities.”
However, Champiti said the works will depend on availability of funding.
When asked if the government will be able to fund more dual carriageways, Secretary to the Treasury Betchani Tchereni said the Roads Fund Administration, which is mandated to provide financing for road projects, was better placed to comment.
However, he said the Treasury has identified funding for capacity improvement of the M1 from Kanengo to Lumbadzi, adding K88 billion has been identified to have the road improved to dual carriageway.
On his part, Malawi Building and Civil Engineering Contractors and Allied Trades Association president Wickly Mhango said the country’s cities need the dual carriageways to decongest the roads, adding traffic jams have an impact on people’s lives and businesses.
Construction of the expanded roads in Lilongwe has seen government spending almost double the amount that was planned for. The Kenyatta Street, which had a contract sum of K20 billion, has been revised to K35 billion while Mzimba Street has been revised from K10 billion to K21 billion due to devaluations of the kwacha and increase in prices of materials.
The Lilongwe dual carriage roads, including the Crossroads to Kanengo dual carriageway, are expected to be completed by December 31 this year.
With population growth, the country has seen an increase in cars especially in the cities, which has worsened traffic congestion.
