Crisis on Nairobi–Nakuru Highway as motorists stranded in overnight traffic jam

Hundreds of motorists, including a group of mourners, were forced to spend Thursday night along the Nairobi–Nakuru highway following a major traffic snarl-up near the Gilgil weighbridge.

By Friday midday, the situation had worsened, with overlapping drivers blamed as dozens of police officers moved in to try and clear the snarl-up.

This came as motorists using the highway called on the government to hasten the planned construction of the Rironi–Mau Summit Expressway to address the perennial traffic jams.

The problem began on Thursday afternoon during the NYS graduation in Gilgil that was graced by President Ruto and attended by hundreds of relatives.

According to Gilgil Deputy County Commissioner Willy Cheboi, as the crowd was leaving the town, there was an accident involving a trailer and a personal car near the weighbridge.

He noted that within minutes, the highway had become impassable due to heavy traffic, worsened by overlapping drivers.

“It took police over five hours to clear the wreckage from the road, and by this time the flow of traffic was at a standstill, forcing motorists to spend the night on the road,” he said.

Speaking on the phone, Cheboi added that the crisis deepened on Friday morning after another trailer developed a mechanical problem, blocking one side of the road.

Cheboi said traffic and regular police officers had been dispatched to the area to try and clear the backlog and were calling on motorists to use alternative routes.

Among those caught up in the jam were mourners travelling from Mombasa to Siaya for the burial of a relative.

According to one of the mourners, Victor Obote, all their burial preparations had stalled after spending the night on the road with the body.

He said they were headed to Siaya for the burial but had been stranded for hours, with nothing they could do.

This was echoed by another mourner, Amina Juma, who said that accessing food and sanitation in the area was the biggest challenge, creating a crisis for dozens of families.

George Waweru, a driver headed to Eldoret to deliver goods, said he had also been stranded for hours, with the traffic jam worsening by the hour.