At a length of about 60 km, the first phase of this highway project to connect Cameroon’s two largest cities, Yaoundé and Douala, has taken just over seven years to reach completion. Construction of this vital piece of Cameroon’s national trunk road network included six span bridges, one main line bridge, an interchange, nine channels, 108 box culverts, one main line toll station, two interchange toll stations and one service area.

This is also the first high-grade highway built in the country, and the project team had to contend with mountainous and hilly terrain, as well as dense forests with swamps, mosquitoes and high incidences of tropical diseases. Design consulting units in China, Cameroon, Denmark and other countries collaborated to optimize the route and to ensure that the project would have minimal impacts on the environment. Many elements of the project, including toll stations and service areas, incorporate local architectural and cultural aesthetics in their design.

The project team also used several methods to reduce cost while ensuring the quality of the roadbed, including the inclusion of local red clay in the roadbed mixtures.