Nairobi governor 'sorry' for transport hitch
Monday December 03 2018
Pedestrians walk on Muranga Road in Nairobi after the county government banned all public service vehicles (matatus) from accessing the central business district on December 3, 2018. SALATON NJAU | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Nairobi governor Mike Sonko has apologised to commuters for pain caused by city centre public vehicles (PSVs) ban and asked for support assuring them that the situation is set to improve.
Mr Sonko says the decision to bar PSVs, better known as matatus, from the Central Business District (CBD) is not meant to punish residents but to bring order in the city.
"It's a good thing," he said of the ban that has seen major roads into the city clogged, adding, "but as you know, all good things are painful. The aim is not to punish the same people who voted for us."
Ensure success
The governor said his administration has invested heavily in construction of bus termini in Ngara and Muthurwa which are ready for use.
"It's a matter of time and things will improve," he said, pleading for support to ensure success of the ban.
A 2012 IBM research revealed that Kenya losses around $500,000 (Sh50m) a day due to time wasted on the road.
Trunk roads
Another study that was conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) showed that more than 80 percent of public transport along trunk roads consists of 14-seater matatus, an ineffective use of the limited urban infrastructure and causes traffic congestion and traffic accidents.
It was the JICA report that recommended matatu route-cut at the CBD along major public transport corridors such as Thika Road and the consequent erection of termini at Globe Cinema Roundabout, Presidential Pavilion near Uhuru Park to cut off matatu routes to/from Ngong Road, and in Muthurwa Estate to cut matatu routes to/from Jogoo Road and Enterprise Road.