Major repairs on the Thika-Kenol road have been pushed back by a funding shortfall, leaving the government to focus available resources on sections that have suffered the worst damage.
The Ministry of Roads told Parliament that while maintenance work is being carried out, the condition of some parts of the road has gone beyond routine repairs and now requires additional money for pavement strengthening and reconstruction.
The ministry said the Thika-Kenol section has deteriorated more rapidly than the neighbouring Thika Superhighway and Kenol-Marua roads due to an inferior pavement structure.
It said the section was recarpeted in 2022, but a planned surface dressing was not done because there was not enough money.
“The overlay hence experienced severe ravelling resulting from the effects of the excess rainfall experienced between October 2023 and May 2024,” the ministry said.
The government is now carrying out several maintenance activities along the road as it seeks to deal with the damage within the available resources.
The works include improving drainage, repairing damaged road bases in selected areas, applying surface dressing to some sections, repainting road markings and putting up road furniture.
However, the ministry said the current maintenance contract does not contain enough quantities to cover all the sections where severe ravelling has occurred with an asphalt concrete overlay.
It has consequently redirected money that had been allocated for surface dressing towards asphalt concrete regulation on sections that have suffered more extensive damage.
“The road section requires additional funding for pavement strengthening,” the ministry said in a statement before Parliament.
The ministry said the affected corridor forms part of the Ngara-Kenol road network, which includes the Nairobi-Thika Superhighway, designated S1, and the Thika-Kenol section of the A2 road.
On the Nairobi-Thika stretch, ministry records show that surface dressing was last carried out in 2019.
The government later undertook localised repairs and pothole patching on the service lanes in 2025. Some portions of the facilities used by non-motorised transport users were also repaired during the same year.
The Thika-Kenol section is also included in the government's planned upgrade of the Thika-Kenol-Marua corridor.
However, the ministry said the larger rehabilitation project cannot proceed until the required funding is available.
It added that procurement must also be completed and all statutory requirements met before the major rehabilitation works can begin.
For now, the government will continue with the maintenance activities covered by the available contract, while the more extensive repairs remain dependent on securing additional funds.