Governors have called for 42 per cent of the Roads Maintenance Levy Fund, arguing that counties manage most of the nation’s roads and should receive a larger share to strengthen devolution.
Appearing before the Senate Roads, Transport and Housing Committee on Tuesday, the Council of Governors (COG) said the current allocation of five per cent is insufficient for effective county road maintenance and does not align with constitutional responsibilities.
“When counties are responsible for over three-quarters of the road network, allocating only five per cent of the levy cannot be justified,” Kiambu County Chief and COG Transport, Infrastructure and Energy Committee Chairperson Kimani Wamatangi told the committee, chaired by Migori Senator Eddy Oketch.
According to the Kenya Roads Register 2024, counties manage 182,092 kilometres—76.15 per cent of Kenya’s total 239,122-kilometre road network.
The debate follows a landmark High Court ruling in June 2025 that declared excluding counties from direct allocation of the Roads Maintenance Levy Fund unconstitutional. The Court of Appeal gave Parliament until July 2026 to amend the law to prevent disruption in road maintenance funding.
Wamatangi noted that the current legal framework predates the 2010 Constitution.
“The law must now reflect the Constitution,” he said, explaining that the Kenya Roads Act of 2007 created three national road agencies: Kenya National Highways Authority, Kenya Urban Roads Authority, and Kenya Rural Roads Authority.
Under the Constitution, national trunk roads are managed by the national government, while county roads are exclusively under county management.
The Kenya Roads (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill, 2025, sponsored in the Senate by Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot, seeks to reclassify roads into National Trunk Roads and County Roads and proposes allocating five per cent of the levy fund to counties.
In the 2024/25 financial year, total levy collections amounted to Sh119.7 billion, meaning counties would receive about Sh6 billion under the current framework.
COG is pushing for a redistribution that would give counties 42 per cent of the fund. Under their proposal, 22 per cent previously allocated to the Constituency Roads Fund would go directly to counties, 10 per cent for roads linking constituencies would also shift to counties, 40 per cent for national trunk roads would remain with the national government, 15 per cent for urban roads would be split—five per cent for national urban trunk roads and 10 per cent for county urban roads. One per cent for roads in national parks would be co-managed with host counties, while two per cent for administration would remain unchanged.
“The levy is a dedicated user-pay fund collected from motorists and cannot be replaced by general equitable share allocations,” Wamatangi said.
“Equitable share is general-purpose money meant for health, water, agriculture and other services. The Roads Maintenance Levy Fund is specifically for road maintenance.”
While welcoming the Bill’s recognition of county roads, COG proposed further amendments to ensure classification aligns with constitutional responsibilities. They recommend that minor urban arterials in central business districts be classified as county roads; secondary rural roads linking major towns fall under counties; and urban collector streets and shopping streets also be assigned to counties. Security roads would remain national but with clearer definitions to avoid overlap.
COG also suggested that road classification and reclassification be managed jointly with the national government to ensure proper consultation.
Beyond funding, they proposed structural reforms, including amending Section 7 of the Kenya Roads Board Act to replace two outdated Principal Secretary positions with two representatives nominated by COG, giving counties direct representation in national road governance. They also advocated deleting provisions establishing Constituency Roads Committees and eventually merging KURA and KeRRA, in line with the 2013 Presidential Taskforce on Parastatal Reforms, the Abdikadir Report, and a January 2025 Cabinet decision.
Wamatangi dismissed concerns over county capacity, noting that most counties already have functional roads departments staffed by qualified engineers.
“Counties have already been maintaining the majority of Kenya’s roads despite limited funding,” he said.
He urged Senators to use their constitutional mandate under Article 96 to safeguard devolution.
“The people who pay the levy on every litre of fuel expect their roads to be fixed by the government closest to them,” he added.
The Bill is currently under consideration by the Senate Committee before proceeding to full debate in the House.