Motorists travelling out of Nairobi on the busy Nairobi-Nakuru Highway have been trapped in a prolonged traffic jam near Limuru on Friday, April 19, with delays lasting several hours.
The situation along the highway has been worsened by rain and overlapping, according to KeNHA.
Social media has been abuzz with frustrated travellers posting about being stationary for extended periods. Many expressed their annoyance at being stuck without movement, sharing their predicaments in real-time online.
The Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA) has acknowledged the situation but has not provided a detailed explanation for the traffic delay. In a brief statement released on X (formerly Twitter), the authority reported, "KeNHAlerts motorists of a traffic snarl-up between Kijabe and Soko Mjinga along the Nairobi - Nakuru Highway due to an incident."
Efforts to clear the jam were underway, but the lack of movement continued to exasperate those caught in the gridlock.
Collins Gichuki, one of the affected motorists, expressed his frustration on X, suggesting stricter penalties for those overlapping in traffic.
"The accident was cleared an hour ago, but because of the impatient nature of Kenyan drivers we are stuck," Gichuki tweeted.
He further appealed to local authorities, "Leo ni kaa tuta lala hapa Kimende, @kipmurkomen make this Nairobi-Nakuru a dual carriageway. This road serves a lot of people. Please pay attention to it."
In response to the ongoing traffic issues, KeNHA advised drivers to avoid overlapping and to consider using the Naivasha - Mai Mahiu route as an alternative to bypass the congestion.
KeNHA also stated, "The Authority's contractors and traffic marshals are currently on-site working to restore normal traffic flow."
However, they did not provide a timeframe for when the traffic would be resolved, leaving many travelers in limbo about their immediate travel plans.
Preliminary reports suggested that the current traffic snarlup was initiated by an accident, which authorities had cleared, yet the residual effects continued to cause delays.
This is not the first time motorists have faced significant delays in this area.
In February, a protest in the Soko Mjinga area caused a similar disruption. Additionally, in December of the previous year, the highway saw significant congestion from Rironi due to increased travel during the holiday season.
