Causes, solutions to traffic jam in Kampala

Ian Clarke 

KAMPALA - Over the past few weeks, I have spent many hours sitting in Kampala traffic. 

The traffic jams are due to a combination of factors, including an extensive programme of rebuilding roads around the Industrial Area, including The Old Port Bell Road, Spring Road, New Port Bell Road, Seventh and Eighth Streets, Namuwongo Road, and Fifth Street at the junction with Seventh Street. 

There are also the ever-present Kampala potholes and work on new signalling junctions (which has now been largely completed). 

I recently visited Dar-es-Salaam, which is like one big building site with numerous new high-rise buildings, new flyovers, and the road system being completely revamped to cater for the bus rapid transport. 

My Uber driver complained that the roadworks have been in progress for the past three years, causing chaos, so it seems that Kampala is not the only city with traffic jams. 

One of the main choke points in Kampala is the Jinja Road intersection, where traffic from Mukwano Road, Eighth Street, and Kibuli empty into Access Road and try to cross the Jinja Road. 

The work to create a flyover should begin around the end of this year, if there are no further land wrangles, but in the meantime, we continue to suffer with policemen holding up traffic for at least 20 to 30 minutes. 

The good news is that Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has built a traffic control centre, which will control and synchronise the traffic lights, with the phasing of the lights matching the density of the flow of traffic. This should abolish the need for traffic Police to override the lights at peak times. 

As far as I am concerned, the traffic control centre cannot come soon enough because I believe that the Police are currently adding to the traffic congestion by their method of holding traffic in one direction for long periods, while they clear traffic from another direction. 

At the Jinja Road junction, their method of directing traffic results in long tailbacks and constant delays, and if one is unfortunate enough to get held in anticipation of a presidential convoy, then the delays can be over an hour. 

This will be followed by absolute bodaboda mayhem when the traffic is released. 

Dr Ian Clarke 

I believe that the Police need to alter their method of traffic control, using shorter periods in each direction instead of causing long tailbacks, which have a knock-on effect causing traffic to build up over the whole day. 

Another way in which the Police add to the problem is through arresting people for indeterminate offences, usually when they make a U-turn on the main Jinja Road dual carriageway. 

A new set of traffic lights has been created at the junction of Third Street and Jinja Road (near Vision Group), where the Police have recently stationed themselves to arrest those who make a U-turn. 

I was one of their victims when a policeman stepped out and stopped me, but I was bold enough to argue that they were acting outside the law because there was no sign preventing a U-turn. 

It was a good-natured exchange and the officer admitted that KCCA should put up a ‘No U-turn’ sign so that the law was clear. However, on speaking to the KCCA engineer in charge of roads, he said there is no reason not to make a U-turn at that junction. 

The U-turn issue is one which the Police exploit and one of my staff was chased by a Police motorcyclist and arrested for making a U-turn on the Jinja Road at Victoria University. 

The Police should be there to enforce the law, but not to take advantage of grey areas.

While there is still much to be done by KCCA to improve the flow of traffic, at least there are some improvements in the pipeline, but KCCA still needs to work with the Police to train them. 

Presently, the Police are part of the problem and not the solution. Lying in wait for someone to make a U-turn or filter left when the road is clear, but there is no green arrow, are areas where good signage would ensure the Police cannot lay a trap. 

So, as far as Kampala traffic jams are concerned, there is light at the end of the tunnel, but until we get the flyover and the computerised traffic lights, the Police should undergo training in efficient traffic control and be prevented from preying on motorists. 

KCCA should also embark on a programme of clear road markings and signage at junctions, marking for lanes turning right and left and putting in lines demarcating where the junction ends and the main road begins. 

The traffic density in Kampala is not really heavy compared to cities such as London, but the controls are poor. 

So, while we wait for the operationalisation of the traffic control centre and the building of a flyover, let KCCA make small changes like putting in road markings and training the traffic officers in better traffic management.