Traffic on Nairobi Expressway affected by mid-morning accident
By Hilary KimuyuMotorists using the Nairobi Expressway were on Saturday forced to use a single lane after a car overturned near the Mlolongo toll station.
This after traffic police officers closed one lane following the accident. The mid-morning accident involved a single vehicle although details of the accidents still remain unclear. No casualties were reported.
Accident near Mlolongo toll station on the Nairobi Expressway. pic.twitter.com/jZF14ibetN
— Hilary Kimuyu (@hilarykimuyu) August 20, 2022
Last month, the government banned passenger vehicle with a capacity of over seven passengers from accessing the Nairobi Expressway in measures aimed at curbing road accidents. The measures followed an accident that came just a week after another one that claimed one life and injuries to passengers.
In both accidents, vehicles rammed into the toll gate at Mlolongo entry smashing into others on the line before they rolled, in what raised safety concerns on the Expressway that was commissioned in June for trials by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said the ban was to give the government time to investigate the cause of accidents witnessed on the expressway and develop appropriate safety measures to ensure the vehicles use the expressway safely.
On July 4, 2022, at least 20 people were injured after an Embasava Sacco bus was involved in an accident on the expressway at the Mlolongo toll station.
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Then two days later, a Super Metro passenger bus overturned after it hit a guardrail while avoiding hitting another vehicle that was using the expressway lane in Westlands.
The accident led to a temporary closure of the toll station with motorists Syokimau toll station to exit or enter the expressway.
On June 26, one person died and scores were injured after a motorist crashed into a toll station at Mlolongo Exit with a toll attendant and other motorists being among the injured. The personal car crashed through the barriers before hitting vehicles that had lined up at the toll station.
Built at a cost of 89 billion by the Chinese, the Expressway is aimed at easing congestion in Nairobi. It also serves as a faster route between Westlands, a Nairobi suburb, and the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
But there have been concerns about the cost of using the road, ranging between Sh100 to Sh1500 a trip, plus the increasing number of accidents.