Traffic around Kampala is notorious and getting worse.
PHOTO: Enormous craters along this road have given it the nickname ‘The Mountains of the Moon’ – a reference to the Rwenzori Mountains between Uganda and the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo). After the rains this 200 metre unnavigable stretch of road (even in a 4X4) becomes known as ‘Lake Bukoto.’
It’s quite common to turn your engine off as you sit still for 10 minutes or more. Yesterday it took us an hour and a half to drive 3 kilometres / 2 miles, bumper to bumper, in and out of the potholes of Kampala’s Industrial Area, choking on the black diesel fumes from lorries we disposed of in the West 30 years ago. A Nature Uganda speaker this week told us how air pollution is a major contributor to heart disease in places like Uganda: road pollution, burning rubbish (including plastics and batteries), cooking over a charcoal stove, kerosene lamps and more.
door to door salesman Kampala
Stuck in traffic on a boda boda crossing Kampala Road. This day was pretty calm. Often the streets are PACKED with bodas
Looks oh so familiar. Remember trying to get into Kampala at the end of our epic 11 hour travel day back from the bush. Complete with freshly (5 seconds earlier) slaughtered cattle on the road. As you have said, the infrastructure needs tweaking!