Residents of Syokimau estate in Machakos County are grappling with the poor
state of roads, leading to heavy traffic and damage to their cars.
Syokimau, which is about 18 km from Nairobi CBD,
has attracted middle-class people who have acquired parcels of land and
constructed their homes, but the state of the roads have turned into a
nightmare.
“Being an outskirt of Nairobi, we had thought
this was the place to settle. But the congestion here and the poor state of
roads has pushed some of us to move to other areas,” says Anthony, who
abandoned his house to move to Kileleshwa in Nairobi.
“I would rather pay rent here and save myself
the agony of spending over an hour in a stretch of just about 2 km off Mombasa
Road,” he adds, noting that his four-bedroom maisonette is yet to get a tenant.
The most affected include Kiungani Road,
Community Road, Parliament Road, Beijing Road, Mwananchi Road, Notre Dame Link
Road, and roads leading to Mama Round, Kalembe stage, and Katani stage.
During weekdays, families are forced to wake
up earlier to prepare their children so they can beat the heavy traffic and
make it to school on time.
The situation is compounded by heavy trucks
either ferrying construction materials or using the area roads as a diversion
to avoid the weighbridge at the nearby Mlolongo area.
The cries of the residents have attracted the
attention of Machakos Senator Agnes Kavindu, who has called on the Senate to
urgently intervene in the matter of severe road infrastructure.
The Senator’s request is a response to
pressing concerns raised by the Syokimau Residents Association (SRA) regarding
the destruction of estate roads primarily by overloaded and unauthorized
trucks.
The SRA has repeatedly complained that these
trucks, meant for light vehicle traffic, are using the roads to bypass official
weighbridges, causing immense damage.
"I rise, pursuant to Standing Order 53
(1), to seek a statement from the Standing Committee on Roads, Transportation,
and Housing on a matter of county-wide concern regarding the urgent
intervention in protecting and preserving critical road infrastructure within
Syokimau from further degradation and unlawful interference," the Senator
stated in her request on Wednesday.
Senator Kavindu tasked the Committee on Roads,
Transportation, and Housing to provide comprehensive answers on several
critical issues plaguing the area, including the reasons for the breach of the
road barrier erected near Rim House by a multi-agency team (KURA, KENHA, and
the County Government of Machakos).
"The damage continues despite the SRA’s
repeated efforts to engage the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) and other
government stakeholders to promote responsible road use," she said on the
floor of the House on Wednesday evening.
She also requested that Senator Eddy Oketch’s
Committee apprise the Senate on the measures being implemented to manage the
heavy traffic from Quarry Road that serves mining sites in the Katani area,
including efforts to reduce noise, dust, and air pollution.
"The Roads Committee should give us the
reasons for authorizing trucks exceeding ten (10) tonnes to access estate
roads, given that their design and structural layering are intended for lighter
vehicles, private cars, and service vans," the Senator said, questioning
the logic of the current licensing regime.
She added that the Senate needs to be provided
with details on "the continued enforcement of the rule of law, public
awareness campaigns, policy dialogue with stakeholders (including transporters
and developers), and the implementation of zoning plans consistent with estate
planning and road preservation."
Senator Kavindu’s move in the Senate signals a
serious commitment to addressing the long-standing infrastructural and
environmental challenges facing residents of Syokimau.
