DAKAR, Senegal—Workers battling bumper-to-bumper traffic to get to jobs in Dakar used to pay a heavy price for the region’s chronic congestion: their time was wasted, their cars broke down often, and they arrived at work exhausted by the long commute. For businesses like Ruf Universel Service, a transportation company in nearby Rufisque, the costs associated with unmanageable traffic were quantifiable.
Longer-than-expected trips often led to an increase in fuel costs and truckers’ wages. Frequently, the company incurred daily fines imposed by clients whose cargoes missed their arrival deadlines. “When you have a 40-ton truck, delays can mean thousands of dollars in penalties a day,” says the firm’s manager, El Hadji Djibril Mbengue.
The highway—the first public-private partnership (PPP) for a greenfield toll road in West Africa—was completed in two phases, both supported by IFC. The first section, a 24-km stretch from Dakar to Diamniadio that was inaugurated in 2013, slashed commuting time between the two cities from more than two hours to about 30 minutes.
The success of the first section led to an extension of the toll road, also structured as a PPP. The second stretch, commissioned in 2016, extended access from Dakar to the newly inaugurated international airport in the region of Thiès and created a faster route from the capital to seaside resorts in Saly, an important source of employment and income for the country.
RELATED LINKS
