Source of the Nile Bridge

The Source of the Nile Bridge, also New Jinja Bridge, which was commissioned on 17 October 2018, by the President of Uganda, is a cable-stayed bridge across the Victoria Nile in Uganda.[3][4] It replaced the Nalubaale Bridge, which was built in 1954.[5][6][7]

Source of the Nile Bridge
Coordinates0.438611°N 33.187500°E / 0.438611; 33.187500
CarriesKampala–Jinja Expressway
CrossesVictoria Nile
LocaleNjeru, Uganda to Jinja, Uganda
Official nameSource of The Nile Bridge
Characteristics
DesignCable-stayed bridge
MaterialSteel, concrete
Total length525 metres (1,722 ft)
History
Construction startJanuary 2014
Opened17 October 2018[1][2]
Location

Location

The bridge is located at Njeru, a suburb of the city of Jinja across the Victoria Nile, between the source of the Nile to the south and Nalubaale Power Station (old bridge) to the north. This is adjacent and immediately north of where the Uganda Railways line crosses the Victoria Nile. It is located on the proposed Kampala–Jinja Expressway, approximately 82 kilometres (51 mi), by road, east of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city.[8] The coordinates of the New Jinja Bridge are 0°26'19.0"N, 33°11'15.0"E (Latitude:0.438611; Longitude:33.187500).[9]

History

Prior to the construction of this bridge, the Nalubaale Bridge was one of only two road crossings across the Victoria Nile in Uganda, the other crossing being the Karuma Bridge, approximately 285 kilometres (177 mi), by road, to the north.[10] The road crossing at Jinja is of national and regional significance because it is part of the "Northern Corridor", a highway across east and central Africa linking the Indian Ocean at Mombasa, Kenya, to the Atlantic Ocean at Matadi, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The old bridge, commissioned in 1954, is in bad structural shape and has outlived its expected lifespan.[11] The new bridge carries a four-lane dual highway with pedestrian sidewalks. It is the longest bridge in Uganda at 525 metres (1,722 ft) long and 22.9 metres (75 ft) wide.[5][12] The feasibility studies were conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.[13]

Construction

In November 2013, the Uganda National Roads Authority awarded the construction contract to the Zenitaka Corporation of Japan and Hyundai Engineering and Construction Company of South Korea.[14] Construction was expected to last four years.[15][16][17] On 28 January 2014, the construction was launched by the President of Uganda.[18]

As of August 2017, the construction was 40 percent complete, according to the bridge contractors, as reported by The Observer (Uganda).[19] During an inspection tour of the construction site by the Japanese ambassador to Uganda, the contractors revealed that they had started using steel from an unnamed Ugandan manufacturer, after the product met the contractors' standards.[19]

Other infrastructure developments associated with the new bridge, include a “roadside station” or service centre on the Jinja side, which will host a restaurant, supermarket, public toilets, and an exhibition area. The station will also accommodate a chamber for bridge maintenance, security and an emergency response unit.[20] The development also calls for surface roads on the Njeru side to connect to (a) the Nyenga-Njeru Road (b) the proposed Kampala–Jinja Expressway (c) the existing Kampala–Jinja Highway and the Mukono–Kayunga–Njeru Road. Road connections to the town of Jinja will be constructed, east of the road service centre.[20][21]

The bridge was commissioned on 17 October 2018 by the President of Uganda Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to national acclaim. The president did caution though that the bridge is to be traversed by vehicular and pedestrian traffic only and is out of bounds to cyclists locally known as "bodabodas" which include bicycles and motorcycles which were advised to use the old Nalubale Bridge.[22]

Construction costs

The total cost of the New Jinja Bridge was budgeted at US$125 million. The government of Japan will finance 80 percent of the cost, in the form of a soft loan of US$100 million at an annual interest rate of 0.01 percent, repayable in ten years but extendable to forty years. The government of Uganda will fund the remaining US$25 million (20 percent), out of its own coffers.[23]

In March 2018, the Ugandan parliament authorized a supplementary loan from JICA, amounting to JPY:3.891 billion (UShs 133 billion or US$36.721), to complete this project.[5] The bridge was completed and officially commissioned on 17 October 2018. The cost of construction was quoted at US$112 million (approximately USh41.1 billion) and has a projected lifespan of 120 years.[2]

See also

Photos

References
  1. Kiirya, Donald (28 September 2018). "Jinja's new bridge ready". New Vision. Kampala. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  2. Walubiri, Moses (16 October 2018). "New Nile Bridge is fifth longest of its kind in Africa". New Vision. Kampala. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  3. EABW Staff (17 October 2018). "President Museveni Commissions $125 Million New Nile Bridge". East Africa Business Week. Kampala. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  4. BBC & Daily Monitor (18 October 2018). "Uganda opens iconic bridge across River Nile". The EastAfrican Quoting Agencies. Nairobi. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  5. "Uganda: Sh459 Billion Approved for New Nile Bridge, Electricity Power Line". The Independent (Uganda) via AllAfrica.com. Kampala. 15 March 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  6. Luganda, Emmanuel (28 January 2014). "Museveni To Launch New Nile Bridge Construction". New Vision. Kampala. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  7. Wafula, Philip (17 October 2018). "New era as Uganda unveils high-tech, iconic bridge". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  8. "Road Distance Between Kampala And Njeru With Map". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  9. Google (30 September 2018). "Location of New Jinja Bridge, Njeru, Uganda" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  10. Globefeed.com (15 April 2014). "Road Distance Between Jinja and Karuma With Map". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  11. Bwambale, Tadeo (1 November 2010). "Japan Gives Sh230 Billion for New Jinja Bridge". New Vision via AllAfrica.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  12. Kairu, Pauline (29 October 2010). "Uganda To Build First Cable-Stayed Bridge In East Africa". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  13. Ogwang, Joel (17 September 2009). "New Sh200 Billion Nile Bridge For 2012". New Vision via AllAfrica.com. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  14. Uganda Radio Network (29 September 2018). "New Nile Bridge Passes Static Road Test". The Observer (Uganda) Quoting Uganda Radio Network. Kampala. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  15. Ogwang, Joel (26 November 2013). "Construction of New Nile Bridge Starts January 2014". New Vision. Kampala. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  16. Wanambwa, Richard (27 November 2013). "New Nile Bridge Contract Signed, 52 People Compensated". Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  17. "Japanese To Start In January On Bridge". East African Business Week via AllAfrica.com. Kampala. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  18. Luganda, Emmanuel (28 January 2014). "Museveni To Launch New Nile Bridge Construction". New Vision. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  19. Kamoga, Jonathan (4 August 2017). "Uganda: Jinja Bridge 40 Percent Complete". The Observer (Uganda). Kampala. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  20. Musisi, Frederic (24 December 2017). "Jinja bridge to be completed by June". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
  21. Administrator (15 March 2018). "New Nile Bridge Changing Jinja's Skyline". NHillFilms.com. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
  22. Kampala Post (17 October 2018). "Museveni Commissions Source Of The Nile Bridge, Hails Japan-Uganda Relations". Kampala Post. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  23. Thome, Wolfgang (26 January 2014). "Safer And Faster Ground Travel Across The Nile". Eturbonews.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
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