Ruto says Chinese-built Rironi–Mau Summit highway in Kenya will open in April 2027

President William Ruto said he will open Phase One of the Rironi–Mau Summit highway in April 2027, two months ahead of the 1 June 2027 deadline he set when the project was launched, Capital FM and Kenyans.co.ke reported on 11 October.

"I will open the road in April 2027," Ruto said, as quoted by both outlets. Kenyans.co.ke reported that he spoke at a church service at St. Mark's Catholic Church in Likuyani Constituency.

Ruto said Phase One will reach Mau Summit and that the road will have "six lanes in some areas and four lanes at some points", Kenyans.co.ke reported. The site described the project as part of the Northern Corridor, a transport route linking the Port of Mombasa to other East African countries.

Ruto launched the project at Kamandura in Kiambu County on 28 November 2025, according to the roads.go.ke page on the launch. The page, run by Kenya's State Department for Roads, describes a public-private partnership between China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), to be built over two years and then operated for 28 years.

Capital FM reported that Shandong Hi-Speed Road and Bridge International is also part of the partnership. The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) said, as quoted by Citizen Digital on 7 July, that the Shandong Hi-Speed section, built by a Chinese contractor, will be delivered under a public-private partnership, that motorists will pay KSh 8 per kilometre in tolls, and that the two concessionaires will operate the road for 28 years before handing it back to KeNHA. Citizen Digital put the total project cost at KSh 184 billion.

Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir said the Rironi–Naivasha section was expected to open to traffic by 30 October, Capital FM reported on 11 October. Kenyans.co.ke said work will then move to the Gilgil–Nakuru stretch and on towards Mau Summit.

Citizen Digital reported on 10 September that Chirchir gave the 30 October date after a development tour of Bomet County. "By October 30, from Rironi to Naivasha, we will have completed the dualling and opened the road to traffic," he said. He added: "We will afterwards continue constructing the Naivasha–Nakuru section, as well as the escarpment section from Kamandura."

Chirchir said the government aims to deliver the road by April or May 2027, Citizen Digital reported on 7 July.

Ruto said construction of the Mau Summit–Malaba highway will start after Phase One, Kenyans.co.ke reported.

Citizen Digital reported on 25 November 2025 that the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF) approved a US$3.15 million grant, about KSh 408 million, for a feasibility study of a public-private partnership upgrade of the 243-km Mau Summit–Malaba road. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will implement the study.