A new proposal will see Kenyans seek other means of transport to get to the Central Business District as private cars will be banned from getting to the CBD for two days each week.
The Nairobi Regeneration Committee tasked with restoring the lost glory of the city proposed that Wednesdays and Saturdays be car-free days in the CBD and Westlands in a bid to decongestion drive.
Transport CS James Macharia who is also part of the regeneration committee said the move will by and large; tackle decongestion headache in the city.
The team is drawn from both the national government and county government of Nairobi and reports directly to President Uhuru Kenyatta. It is chaired by Governor Mike Sonko and Tourism CS Najib Balala.
Traffic gridlock is one of Nairobi’s biggest undoing as passengers spend approximately 62. 44 minutes stuck in traffic daily according to 2017 traffic index by Serbia-based website www.mumbeo.com.
A separate report by the Ministry of Roads and Transport in 2007 indicated that commuters using personal vehicles account for 36 percent while 29 percent use public means of transport.
Nairobi County Executive Chair for Roads, Transport, and Infrastructure Mohammed Dagane noted that the proposal if adopted will boost the culture of using public transport.
“We need to shift from the idea of using our own vehicles coming to town every day because you find more than three million of cars coming to the city centre and each of them is not carrying more than one passenger,” said the CEC in an interview with a local media house.
He added that the proposal will also mitigate environmental pollution.
Last month, State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu had touched on the same issue noting that the car-free days would come in with the launch of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in July. It will begin in Westlands.