Nairobi's bridges of good and bad

A number of towering bridges connecting major roads in Nairobi have had their underbellies turned into little hideouts for criminals and truant street children.

Many have also been turned into illegal garbage points, even informal toilets for hundreds of street families.

Others have had their giant pillars charred from night fires lit by street families looking to keep warm – and cook meals.

Some Nairobians, however, have turned these spots into under-bridge hotels, motor vehicle repair and parking shops and informal rest points for many, turning the alleys into desperate lifeline for many city families.

Christine Ondieki, a widow and mother of three, runs a small food stall under one such bridge, in Pipeline area. The kiosk is active during the day, and goes to sleep at night, leaving the ground to street families and criminals.

Here, good and bad are having to live together; one reigning during the day, while the other takes over the night.

Operating a kiosk under the giant footbridges has its own hazards.

Christine admits that she is fully aware of the risks—the constant dust, the danger of vehicles thundering overhead, and even the train that passes just metres away.

“I know it can be quite unsafe, but this is where I earn money to feed my children. If I don’t cook here, then we will go hungry,” Ondieki says.

She she is aware that criminal gangs often rummage through the spot at night, searching for whatever valuables hawkers and kiosk operators may have been left behind. Other gangs use the spot as meeting and sleeping area.

Innocent residents who cross the areas at night are often harassed by some of these young men, even made to pay a crossing fee.

Alloyce Wanga, a Kenyan based in the US recently had a run-in with a group of rowdy youth under one of the bridges.

“I disembarked from my taxi, somewhere me near Transami, and bumped into a group of young men cooking under a road bridge. They immediately surrounded me demanding what they called a ‘gate pass.’ I handed them some money, and as I walked away, I could hear them debating whether to use the money to buy flour or bread,” said Wanga.

According to the residents, many cases often go unreported.

Residents are concerned that such public spaces are being turned into havens of lawlessness.

Nairobi residents are now calling on the government to act swiftly.