How new Green Park terminal can be efficiently run

As the construction of the Green Park Matatu Terminal gets to a completion, Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) in collaboration with other relevant public transport government agencies should seriously discuss the effective and efficient management of this new PSV facility.

Management of such a vital public service vehicles terminal should not be taken for granted.

It ought to be run by a credible, highly integrated management committee or even better still a board composed of seven persons of high integrity each from the following entities: Traffic One, Nairobi County, Nairobi City County, County commissioner Nairobi, Attorney General’s office, Consumer federation of Kenya (Cofek) to represent commuters, Federation of public transport sector representatives and Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (Namata) whose jurisdiction the GP PSV terminal falls in.

Such a team will be proficient in governance, dispute resolutions and in a position to nip conflict of interest in the bud and get rid of vested interests.

This Green Park Terminal Board committee performance will be above board as it will be neutral. It should also meet monthly to review the GP current situation, emerging constraints as well as other ensuing challenges besides sorting out any disputes and conflicts from among the PSV transport operators and other stakeholders.

This is the most effective, efficient and transparent mode of managing such an important public venture.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s up to 2002 we had a Nairobi Traffic Liaison Committee chaired by the then Nairobi Provincial Commissioner assisted by the Officer Commanding Traffic Nairobi area. The committee was made up of representatives from the administrative agencies and private sector mentioned above.

This Traffic Liaison Committee’s mandate was to oversee smooth flow of traffic and compliance with PSV regulations. It was very effective in allocation of both bus laybys and the termini as per the public demands, besides addressing the emerging complaints.

The current GP terminal management team with a number of them picked up from the PSV sector is worrying and portends grim picture of the parks management.

Some of us have been at the heart of PSV transport business operations for over four decades and have vast experience on the do’s and don’ts and the short comings that bedevils the sector.

As sections of the PSV operators relocate to this new GP terminal, their expectations are that of transparent, credible and accountable management that’s fair to all.

Let’s take care lest we transfer the messy and ugly practices from the City Hall inspectorate such as corruption.

Another serious issues is allowing operation of a petroleum filling station in the GP PSV terminal. This will compromise both security and safety of the commuters arriving and departing from the facility.

As a member of the Nairobi City County’s action plan on extreme terrorism, this is one of the many security and safety threats we have been scrutinising and assessing the impact in society, especially in the densely populated areas.

I am not sure whether Nema really consented to this idea of a petroleum filling station creation in this modern matatu terminal.

We do appreciation and commend the many positive development projects successfully initiated by the NMS such as the new county health facilities, many informal settlement residents accessing clean water, pedestrian walk ways and cyclist lanes and access roads in the slams within Nairobi City County.

NMS should not falter on this GP PSV effective terminal management that has got high expectation from the public in terms of orderly commuting service provision.

Mr Mbugua is the chairman, MWA and Secretary Federation of Public Transport Sector (FPTS)