Kampala–Gulu Highway
Road in Uganda
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Kampala–Gulu Highway, also Kampala–Gulu Road, is a road connecting Uganda's capital city of Kampala, in the Central Region, with the city of Gulu, the largest urban centre in the country's Northern Region.[2]
Location
The road starts in Kampala and continues north, through eight Ugandan districts, and ends in Gulu, a distance of approximately 330 kilometres (205 mi).[1]
The road passes through the districts of Kampala, Wakiso, Luweero, Nakasongola, Kiryandongo, Oyam, Omoro and Gulu.
Overview
The road from Kampala to Gulu is old (first constructed in the 1940s)[citation needed], and narrow.[3] Instead of the regulatory 7 metres (23 ft) of roadway, with shoulders and drainage channels, this road is only 6 metres (20 ft) in some sections, leaving little room for vehicles to overtake one another.[4] The Kampala–Gulu Road, is one of the most accident-prone in the country, along with Kampala–Jinja Road, Kampala–Masaka Road and the Kampala Northern Bypass Highway.[5][6][7][8][9]
In 2016, the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA), committed to widen the narrow sections of this road.[4]
Intersections
Along its journey, the Kampala–Gulu Highway intersects with several major roadways, including the following: (a) at Bwaise, it cuts across the Kampala Northern Bypass Highway.[10] (b) the 42 kilometres (26 mi) Matugga–Kapeeka Road peels off the highway at Matugga.[11] (c) in Wobulenzi, the Ziroobwe–Wobulenzi Road connects with this highway (d) the Luweero–Butalangu Road intersects with the Gulu highway in Luweero. (e) the Kafu–Masindi Road, measuring 41 kilometres (25 mi),[12] branches off the Gulu highway at Kafu, Uganda, in Kiryandongo District.[13]
(f) At Rwekunye, the Rwekunye–Apac–Aduku–Lira–Kitgum–Musingo Road meets the Kampala–Gulu Highway. (g) The 52 kilometres (32 mi)[14] Masindi–Kigumba Road meets with the Gulu Highway. (h) in Karuma, north of the Karuma Bridge, the Karuma–Olwiyo–Pakwach–Nebbi–Arua Road makes a sharp left turn, off the Kampala-Gulu Highway.[15] (i) Approximately 11 kilometres (7 mi)[16] further north, at Kamdini, the Kamdini–Lira Road, makes a sharp right turn to continue on to Lira, 68 kilometres (42 mi) to the east.[17]
In Gulu, this road interacts with the Gulu–Nimule Road and with the Gulu-Kitgum Road.[18]
Other considerations
When the Kampala–Bombo Expressway is built, as expected, it will constitute the first 33 kilometres (21 mi) of the Kampala–Gulu Highway.[19] From Kamdini, the Kampala–Gulu Highway continues north, for another 62 kilometres (39 mi), as the Kamdini–Gulu Road.[20][21]