Despite fuel price reductions announced by the Energy and Petroleum Regulation Authority (EPRA) on Sunday, there remains a conundrum on why the Road Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF) has been increased.

The levy shot up from Ksh.18 in the June-July cycle to Ksh.25 despite nationwide public participation which contested the increment and an assurance from former Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen that they will heed the recommendations made by Kenyans.

"We will only make this decision when we are certain that any revenue measures adopted will not result in a rise in the cost of living," said Murkomen on July 8, adding that the government will be keen to not increase the Levy without exacerbating the cost of living.

At the time, Murkomen stated that Kenya is currently facing a maintenance deficit of Ksh.78 billion for the fiscal year 2024, with the figure expected to rise to Ksh.315 billion by the fiscal year 2028/2029.

He added that Kenya's road network has expanded significantly, from 166,451 km in 2016 to 239,122 km currently, necessitating regular maintenance.

“As suggested by Kenyans, we will only make this decision when we are certain that any revenue measures adopted will not result in a rise in the cost of living,” he noted.

The Kenya Roads Board (KRB) had made three proposals on effecting the RMLF increment as one was setting the levy as a percentage of fuel import cost which would essentially mean that the levy ceases being a specific rate because it would vary based on international rates.

KRB's second proposal was to set the Fuel Levy rate in US dollars to cushion the RMLF from the depreciation of the shilling. The disadvantage of this would be the rates would flactuate as US exchange rates change.

The third proposal was to retain the existing rate (Ksh.18/L) but review it upwards 39.0% to Ksh.25/litre and conduct periodic reviews once every 3 years.

RMLF's last review was made in July 2016 when it was increased from Ksh.12 to Ksh.18 per litre.

The price changes now mean that consumers in Nairobi will pay a maximum of Ksh.188.84 for a litre of super petrol, Ksh.171.60 for a litre of diesel and Ksh.161.75 for a litre of kerosene..