Sonko Bans Matatus from Entering Nairobi CBD Effective January 2nd

No public service vehicles (PSVs) will be allowed to operate within the central business district (CBD) effective January 2nd, the Nairobi County Government has announced.

Matatus from upcountry will from January 2nd terminate at designated terminals outside the CBD, while town service vehicles will not be allowed to park within the city centre.

“If you have 200 vehicles and you have nowhere to park them, you better buy a piece of land to park your vehicles. There are some who have already bought a piece of land. If you don’t have a place to park then you should create a marshalling system where you call a matatu for pick and drop,” Nairobi Deputy Governor Polycarp Igathe said.

“I will be meeting all the stakeholders to agree on this. We are not going to debate it because the debate was held on August 8, we wrote it in our manifesto that we are going to make Nairobi a congestion free area. We cannot be a country where we debate things forever and delay implementation of issues”.

In September, a similar directive by Governor Mike Sonko failed after pressure from PSV owners and the public, prompting the county government to halt the plan to a later date. Igathe said anew plan dubbed Nairobi Integrated Urban Transport Masterplan, will be a long-term solution to problems of congestion in the city. It proposes creation of a circular commuter rail using the existing infrastructure, with the initial part of the project expected to be complete in 36 months.

“We have a station in Makadara, Imara Daima. When you come from Syokimau – Athi River you arrive at central bus station, we shall connect to Thika. Connect from Githurai and create a market there – from Githurai we are making a new train line that goes to Kiambu which will connect to Limuru, then to Kikuyu and back to city centre. From city centre we shall create a loop line from Ngong, Kiserian into Kitengera, back to Athi River,” said Igathe Friday.