Cairo–Dakar Highway (TAH 1) in the west along the Atlantic coast became the first fully sealed highway crossing the Sahara from north to south (barring a few kilometres in No Man's Land between Morocco/Western Sahara and Mauritania). The Cairo–Cape Town Highway (TAH 4) follows the Nile in the east, the previous long unpaved sections in Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya have since been significantly improved. The highway from Nanyuki in Kenya to Moyale at the Ethiopian border is an excellent tarmac road. The roads in Ethiopia and Sudan are all tarmac of largely decent quality as at October 2020. Announced in 2018, by 2019 a third trade route opened up between Algeria and Mauritania, but has yet to be classified. Established during the French colonial era as a link between Algiers with Dakar to avoid the then Spanish Sahara on the Atlantic, it was closed in 1963. Currently tarmac ends on the Algerian border just south of Tindouf and resumes some 900-kilometres later at Zouerat, passing via Bir Moghrein. Route The cities and countries served, and status of the road are as follows. In Algeria Algiers to Ghardaia, 625 km, paved, in good condition Ghardaia to Tamanrasset, 1,291 km, paved in good condition Tamanrasset to In Guezzam at the Niger border, 400 km, paved. In Guezzam to Assamaka, the Niger border post: 28 km of soft sand tracks and can be done in conventional 2WD vehicles though not recommended. see also: Algeria–Niger border In Niger Assamaka to Arlit, 200 km, marked track over sand sheet but can be done in conventional 2WD vehicles. Arlit to Agadez, 243 km, paved in 1980, with sections in poor condition. Agadez to Zinder, 431 km, paved. Zinder-Magaria at the Nigerian border, 111 km, paved but in poor condition. see also: Niger-Nigeria border In Nigeria Niger border to Lagos via Kano, Kaduna, Oyo, Ibadan: 1,193 km of which 127 km is in good condition and 1,066 km 'fair'. In summary, although a few paved sections may be in poor condition, only 200 km of the route remains as an unimproved desert track, and only 130 km remains unpaved but 'improved'. Links to other transnational highways The Trans-Sahara Highway intersects with: Cairo–Dakar Trans-African Highway in Algiers Trans-Sahelian Highway in Kano, Nigeria Trans–West African Coastal Highway in Lagos Lagos–Mombasa Highway in Lagos See also Missions Berliet-Ténéré Trans–West African Coastal Highway Trans-Sahelian Highway Trans-African Highway network Transport in Niger