Delayed Fort Portal-Hima road works upset traders

China Wu Yi Construction Company was contracted in October 2017  by Uganda National Roads Authority to repair the Fort Portal-Hima road, which is part of the Kampala-Fort Portal-Kasese-Bwera highway.

 The 18-month project, which started in 2018 with works, including construction site surface cleaning, drainage system cleaning, the original pavement repairs and asphalt surface treatment, was supposed to be handed over last year.

 However, the traders say they can no longer connect with their customers due to the multitude of high pavements that were created during road levelling and the giant holes that were dug between the road and shops. Some traders have improvised by erecting wooden banks to access their shops.

Other traders claim that the clouds of dust on the roads have made it impossible for them to sell their merchandise.
Mr James Asiimwe, a boda boda rider at Continental stage, says his business has been affected since his clients cannot stand the dust.

“We are uncertain of when this road will be completed. When the rain season sets in, the road will be impassable,” he said.

Ms Ruth Kembabazi, a businesswoman on Lugard Street, in the city centre, said they are incurring losses since their customers have abandoned them.

Contractor speaks
Mr Levi Rugasira, the spokesman for China Wu Yi, said they have encountered enormous challenges which they never anticipated, including the soil type and bringing down structures constructed in the road reserve.

“The soils are loamy, we have to dig deep to replace them with good layers of murram. Structures like the Science centre, Total Petrol Station, and the container shops near the main roundabout are in the road reserve, even the billboards, so notifying the owners to relocate took a long process”
The Unra Manager for Media Relations, Mr Allan Ssempebwa, said:“I can say that the project is 90 per cent near completion. Although it was supposed to end last year, some unavoidable circumstances delayed the contractor.”

In a survey on the  impact of loam soils  in the construction industry in Kabarole District, Mr George Sande, the managing director of Pecasa Enterprises, said: “It is more expensive to undertake any construction works in Kabarole compared to elsewhere in the country due to loam soils.”

 Mr Sande explained that contractors have to dig deep into the soils to reach the basement and  fill the holes with a lot of more murram  which cannot easily be found in the district.
He added that the area receives heavy rainfall throughout the year, which makes construction works difficult.

The Kabarole District engineer, Mr Steven Wakatama, said the contractor has to reinforce the foundation with many layers of murram.
“If money is available, you compact the basement with about two layers of eight inch of murram” Mr  Wakatama said.

Issue

Kabarole District lies between 1300 and 3800 meters above sea level.
It is covered by black loams over red sandy clay loams (volcanic soils) and red sandy loams occasionally underlaid by soft laterites on the top layer in most parts of the District which make up about 70 percent of the district.  
 Source: Kabarole district 5-year development plan (2011-2016)