KCCA should sort out growing traffic mess

Since the start of the week, traffic on roads in Kampala have been a mess. The worst came on Monday evening. Many a motorist were stuck in traffic for hours.
We might never be able to quantify the extent of the losses incurred in time and money.
One of the biggest challenges has been indiscipline on the part of some road users. It is common place for some motorists to hold up traffic by either attempting a U-turn, which is illegal, or block oncoming traffic by trying to force their way onto a lane on another end of the road.
This raises questions about where they learnt driving. If it was from driving schools, then we need to reexamine the kind of teaching that goes on there.
Other causes of the incessant congestion include the sharp rise in the number of vehicles, narrow roads, lack of alternative means of transport, limited parking spaces, ineffective and unplanned mechanisms for managing traffic, and failure to discourage the entry of private vehicles into the city.
Development of a railway network for Kampala would have killed reliance on cars for public transport. Similarly, implementation of sections of the Transport Master Plan for the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GMKA) of 2009, which had provided for turning of 122kms of roads in the city into dual carriageways and an upgrade of 572.9kms of single carriageways to have at least two motor vehicle lanes would have fixed narrow roads.
Given the perpetual shortages of money, redesigning of the roads might not be possible. There is also no chance that we can immediately fix indiscipline. That requires some time.
But how about the traffic management and regulation of entry of private vehicles into the city? Do they require money and time to fix too? Certainly not.
Congestion in the city is mainly because most buildings in the city have no provision for underground parking. This is aggravated by owners of private cars who occupy parking spaces for most of the working day, often obstructing traffic on what should be running lanes.
KCCA needs to embark on a deliberate plan to decongest the city. Introduction of a prohibitive toll for private cars entering the city might be a starting point.
It is, however, important that KCCA and the Directorate of Traffic and Road Safety should work together to develop a comprehensive mechanism for managing traffic in the city.

The issue: Traffic mess
Our view: KCCA needs to embark on a deliberate plan to decongest the city. Introduction of a prohibitive toll for private cars entering the city might be a starting point.