Development corridors are focal points for national and international development investment in East Africa, and national governments are directing their limited public sector resources towards corridor development. This research provides critical analysis of development corridors as a mechanism for delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The authors identify three distinct ‘imaginaries’ – or representations of perspectives – of development corridors that exist among development actors, across five development corridors in East Africa. These imaginaries articulate shared understandings of the ways in which corridors are likely to either support or limit achievement of the SDGs by 2030.