Gov’t Dedicates One Lane of Thika Superhighway to PSVs

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure has announced that public service vehicles (PSVs) plying the Thika Superhighway route will from Thursday operate on one lane exclusively set aside for them.

Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said that one lane of the Superhighway will be dedicated for the matatus in the government’s latest move to manage traffic on the busy route.

Traffic has remained a nightmare on the highway despite its expansion during former President Mwai Kibaki’s administration. Macharia announced the move when he appeared before Senate Committee on Roads Committee.

“We need more than 900 buses in these six corridors and because we don’t have them, we have opened one corridor, the Thika Highway, so that from today, we are starting the demarcation and dedication of that lane,” Mr Macharia said.

The CS said he expects a reduction in fare prices by the PSVs on the route, even as the government plans to launch the Bus Rapid Transit in the city in the near future.

“We have engaged Treasury and they have said that if they bring proper BRT buses, we shall consider not charging them duty,” said Macharia.

Public Service CS Prof Margaret Kobia told the Senate team that the National Youth Service has deployed 24 buses on nine routes in the city in a bid to rescue Nairobi commuters from traffic menace.

“Going forward and beginning this week, the government will isolate dedicated expressways to fast-track buses to and from specified destinations” said Prof Kobia.

“Unless Nairobi gets mass transport, all these are short-term measures. After we acquire 20 more buses, we’ll be able to say how sustainable this is,” she added.