Kampala — The proposed new bridge across the River Nile at Jinja will cost about $100 and take three and a half years to complete.

The Executive Director Uganda National Roads Authority, Peter Ssebanakitta said this last week in a short speech read for him by the authority's spokesperson, Dan Alinange during the third public consultation workshop on the project at Ridar Hotel, Seeta, Kampala.

"The proposed bridge will cost about $100 million. It will start in 2011 and take three and a half years to complete. It will be a dual carriage modern bridge that will also be a landmark attraction for tourists besides its basic transport function," he said.

Ssebanakitta also cleared the air on the position of the current bridge as well as the issue of compensation for parties affected by the proposed route, which will pass through a number of properties including several guest houses, a fuel station and developments for Uganda Electricity Transmission Company.

"Before the new one is completed, we will maintain the current bridge and even rehabilitate it to ensure that it continues to work.

Government is also committed to compensating everyone affected by the proposed route passing through their land and properties," he said.

The final draft report on the project feasibility study prepared by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) was presented to the participants by Team Leader Isamu Gunji and showed the project to be economically and environmentally viable.

It has become necessary to have a new bridge as the old one had outlived its life expectancy of 50 years since 1953 when it was built and traffic using it as part of the Northern Corridor covering the transport from Mombasa to the hinterland had increased. Seki Tsekou, the Chief Representative Japan International Cooperation Agency in Uganda said the Japanese government and JICA were considering financing the project.

He said Japan had doubled its financial aid to Africa and was considering further co-operation.

The old bridge constructed in the early fifties is a narrow road for vehicles and has a parallel one that is a railway crossing.