Application of Gis in Road Reserves Mapping Case Study: Kayole – Mananja – Masinga (C438) Road in Machakos County

Abstract

A functioning road infrastructure accelerates socio - economic developments. In Kenya, the most used mode of transport is by road. However, some key challenges are facing the road sub-sector in that road reserves are narrow and many are facing encroachments. This is due to lack of concise information on road reserves since the traditional manual system of road reserves information management in form of hard copy maps and records, which is still in use today, is not only less effective and efficient but also time consuming especially during road reserves information retrieval. Therefore, there is need to develop a modern road reserves management geodatabase that will facilitate effective and efficient road reserves information collection and dissemination, so as to protect the road reserves in order to support long term sustainable development of the road infrastructure. The first step in developing a modern road reserves management geodatabase was collection of relevant datasets, both spatial and non-spatial. In this case, registry index maps, ground control surveys and topographical maps were collected. The datasets used were obtained from different sources and with different data properties and coverage. These datasets obtained were then edited and harmonized together. This involved confirming and ensuring that the datasets were congruent in terms of scales, projection, georeferencing and all the other harmonization aspects. Querying criteria was built to allow the road reserves information transfer. As a result, using AutoCAD and Arc map softwares, the topographical data and the registry index maps, the road reserve along Kayole – Mananja (C438) road was therefore mapped and a geodatabase for road reserves mapping was designed. Essential geographical information to the users was retrieved from the geodatabase when subjected to queries. This study proved that GIS is a very critical technological advancement in the management and development of the road infrastructure. It was realized that through the created geodatabase, it was possible to identify encroachments on the road at the area of study. Finally, it is recommended that the road reserves information geodatabase designed should be shared through the web and mobile GIS platforms for faster and easier access of the information.