In an effort to decongest the city, the county government of Nairobi on Sunday said only two PSVs per Sacco will be allowed into the CBD.
According to the county director of operations , Mr Peter Mbaya, each vehicle will only be granted at least five minutes in the allocated slots to drop and pick passengers.
He said those who flout the new rule will be arrested and charged and the vehicle impounded. He added that the Saccos will have to look for their own holding spaces as the county government is only responsible for providing picking and dropping spots.
Efforts to decongest traffic in Nairobi has run into headwinds after a matatu lobby opposed a new move to allow only two vehicles per Sacco into the city centre.
The Matatu Welfare Association (MWA), which represents the industry workers, has joined vehicle owners in voicing opposition to the directive which has already started.
“This will not work because players like us in the industry were not consulted. They should not rush to implement the directive,’ said MWA chairman Dickson Mbugua.
In an effort to decongest the city, the county government of Nairobi on Sunday said only two PSVs per Sacco will be allowed into the CBD.
According to the county director of operations , Mr Peter Mbaya, each vehicle will only be granted at least five minutes in the allocated slots to drop and pick passengers.
He said those who flout the new rule will be arrested and charged and the vehicle impounded. He added that the Saccos will have to look for their own holding spaces as the county government is only responsible for providing picking and dropping spots.
But Mr Mbugua, who was speaking to Shipping and Logistics in an interview, Tuesday, said the decision to allow only two PSVs per Sacco into the CBD is not practical.
“Traffic congestion within the city is an issue that that bothers all players in the transport industry. However, the county government should not rush at arriving at unpractical decisions at how the city should be decongested without involving stakeholders.” he said.
The Nairobi county has been at loggerheads with players in the transport business on how the city should be decongested.
In February, a section of boda boda riders within the city vowed to continue with their operations, defying a directive by Governor Mike Sonko’s administration which had barred them from operating within the CBD.
Through their association, the riders who were demanding an alternative parking space vowed to stay put within the city, arguing that they have not been flouting city traffic rules.
According to a gazette notice which was published in a local daily in January, the riders were no longer allowed access into the CBD except for the ones offering courier services.
The notice, which took effect immediately, warned of hefty fines, arrest and long term jail for riders who contravened the directive.
Also in April, the Matatu Owners Association (MOA) defied plans by Nairobi county to kick them out of the city centre in a decongestion effort ordered by Governor Sonko.
The MOA chairman Simon Kimutai also opposed a proposal that matatus should operate from the previously gazetted nine stages now under the county government.
He argued that the stages lacked capacity to accommodate the more than 20,000 matatus operating in Nairobi.
“If the county government wants to do it alone, then it’ll be a problem. We also need to know whether the move is expected to affect all transport service providers or only limited to matataus,” said Mr Kimutai.
Early this month, Nairobi Matatu owners vowed to object a move by the National Youth Service to introduce commuter buses within the city saying they would frustrate the initiative until it fails as players in the transport business were not consulted.
The Association of Matatu Operators in the City’s CBD chairman Jamal Ibrahim faulted the move saying they want a level playing field created, adding that the government cannot expect operators to charge the same or lower fares as the NYS yet they are being levied different charges to operate.
He noted that the government should channel the resources in maintaining impassable roads in araes such as Mwiki, Komarock, and Juja, instead of investing in “a project set for a total failure”.
“They are trying to create a civil war between the government and the matatu industry. Somebody cannot just wake up and introduce buses as if there was nothing going on before. We do not want to react but we can act and we are planning to act if our grievances are not listened to,” said Mr Ibrahim in Nairobi.
The first batch of 30 bus rapid transit (BRT) vehicles bought at a cost of Sh500 million are also set to arrive in the country by end of June. They will be deployed on the already marked Thika Superhighway and other major transport corridors within the city.
