Unguarded trenches on Mombasa Road leave motorists in pain

Motorists and pedestrians using Mombasa Road, Nairobi, have raised concerns over the slow pace of completion of a section of the highway by the contractor.

The contractor is working on a section from the City Centre all the way to City Cabanas, which started in 2023.

But what has raised concerns is the stretch between Airtel Kenya and General Motors where stagnant water is slowly ruining the old Mombasa road.

Here the contractor dug a trench a one-metre-deep that has been collecting water owing to rains.

It is, however, the excavation along the stretch from Sameer Africa towards and General Motors that has become a thorn in the flesh for road users due to the lack of clear road markings and caution signs.

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For this reason, accidents are reported on the stretch almost on a daily basis as vehicles land on the deep trench.

“The contractor seems to be working at a slow pace because nothing much has happened since they arrived on the site, what is worrying is that they have excavated several spots without proper safety measures,” a motorist lamented.

“Some sections under construction are very dangerous in case motorists veer off the road, in fact, some have plunged in excavation several times,” Leo Muchiri who frequently uses the stretch said.

Upon landing on site, the contractor demolished bus stops on the stretch thus making it risky for matatus to drop passengers between Airtel Kenya and General Motors.

“Matatus drop off and pick up points were destroyed during the excavation,” a matatu conductor said.

The Kenya National Highways Authority, which has been giving updates of the road did not respond to our inquiry on why the contractor has abandoned the works or the exact amount allocated for the expansion.

Pedestrians have not been spared. A walkway that was purposely meant for those on foot, is a death trap as they are frequently edged out of the walkway by boda boda riders.

The deep trench has also exposed the foundation of the old Mombasa road, made of loose concrete and soil.

Visibly, compressed soil is slowly falling, getting soaked and likely to be eroded in a move that is likely to weaken the section of the busy highway.

On the stretch, there are no tapes to guide motorists, which makes it dangerous to drive at night.

[Pkemoi Ng’enoh]

Ideally, there ought to be other markings to guard vehicles from falling off into the excavation including heavy drums filled with cement and ballast.

However, the marking is placed far apart and some drums have since been knocked down by motorists and in some areas, heaps of murram soil were left blocking water drainage.