Engineers challenged on road designs

Engineers have been urged to design and build roads that address challenges brought about by the effects of climate change, including floods and drainage.

Principal Secretary for the State Department of Roads Joseph Mbugua observed that Kenya’s infrastructure and transport systems face challenges that require research-driven responses.

He highlighted challenges, including road safety, drainage failures, technological and performance gaps and the growing impacts of climate change.

He was addressing engineers, academia and transport industry players during the first Kenya Institute of Highways and Building Technology (KIHBT) international research conference at a Mombasa hotel recently.

“We must rethink standards, specifications, and mitigation measures with scientific precision. These challenges set the research agenda for all stakeholders,” Eng Mbugua stated.

He said the government has embraced the use of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) to improve traffic management and operational monitoring.

“Digitised weighbridge operations are strengthening axle load enforcement and protecting the infrastructure we have invested so heavily in,” Mbugua added. Principal Secretary for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Dr Esther Muoria told the engineers to come up with solutions that end the construction of substandard roads in the country.

She asked why there are substandard roads while the country has a pool of qualified engineers, challenging them to provide solutions that translate into quality infrastructure.

According to the PS, some roads develop potholes soon after their construction because they are substandard, and he told engineers to reskill and improve quality.

“This thing of doing roads for the sake of finishing them has no space in this country,” she said, adding that engineers must provide sustainable solutions.

Earlier, Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) deputy director for research and innovation Dr Victoria Okumu called for continuous professional development for engineers to ensure they acquire skills such as artificial intelligence and data analytics to improve the quality of infrastructure.

Assistant lecturer at Dedan Kimathi University of Technology, engineer Martin Ngari, however, said the AI Bill lacks the aspect of readiness in its application, which should be addressed.

The engineers called for their involvement in projects from the design to approval stages to ensure quality. Meanwhile, Dr Muoria noted that no country can build world-class infrastructure without world-class skills and called for collaboration between training institutions, industry, regulators, development partners and government agencies.