According to General Edward Katumba Wamala, Minister of Works and Transport, work on a new bridge over the River Katonga on the Kampala-Masaka Highway would start in October of this year.
During the plenary session on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, he revealed this information in response to a national security question posed by Hon. Basil Bataringaya, the member of parliament for Kashari North County.
Concerned that the current bridge’s repairs had been abandoned, Bataringaya asked the minister to provide a timeline for when the important commerce route will be fixed.
The Katonga bridge was washed away and closed for over six months last year. In order to fix this bridge temporarily, traffic had to go via the lengthy Sembabule road, which caused inconvenience for traders both financially and in terms of time, according to Bataringaya.
He asked the minister of works to design a quicker detour while the impacted bridge’s construction progresses.
He went on, “And in this instance, I suggest the Villa Maria-Kalungu-Masaka Road.”
According to Katumba Wamala, the Katonga bridge was put at risk by weather patterns that altered the course of the river.
In order to build a new construction that is durable and would stand the test of time, we had to research the weather patterns of that river. We couldn’t hastily construct the nearly identical bridge that had been jeopardized,” he declared.
In order to guarantee that the portion of the road is repaired to satisfy the demands of the truck volumes, the minister also disclosed that the contractor will handle the issues within the Kalandazi and Lwera wetlands.
Additionally, he urged drivers on the Kampala-Masaka Highway to be patient while the new bridge is being built.
“I want us to realize that these are not easy structures to implement. It is this same House that will hold us accountable if we rush into building a structure and it fails in a few years. Katumba Wamala stated, “This is a very sensitive structure, so it should be done with all the caution and detail it deserves.”
Following the destruction of the Katonga bridge by flash floods in May 2023, the government decided to redirect heavy trucks along the Mpigi-Sembabule-Masaka Road.
