Nairobi News

State of roads

Sonko approves six boda boda termini in congested city centre


City Hall has identified six locations in the city centre where it will erect boda boda shades soon.

The shades will act as pick-up and dropped off points in the Central Business District (CBD)..

“We have got a partner who has agreed to collaborate with us to build the shades and we have identified six locations around the city centre for the exercise.

“We are ready with everything and we are just waiting for the official announcement from the Governor Mike Sonko. The boda boda operators are already using one of the sites so we will just come and put up the shade,” added Mr Majevdia on Tuesday.

PERIPHERY OF CITY

Mr Majevdia explained that the shades will be fixed in sites in the periphery of the city centre where boda boda operators will wait for customers.

The shades will operate in a first-in first-out basis.

“There is no point of boda bodas parking in the CBD yet there are no customers. They will now drop passengers and then go back to the shades because at the moment our askaris are after them whenever they access the CBD,” he said.

City Hall banned boda boda operators from accessing the city centre in March 2018. Over 4, 000 motorbikes have been impounded by the county government in crackdown on non-compliant operators.

He said that some of the six locations where the shades will be erected are Landi Mawe, Railways, Globe Cinema Roundabout and Kariokor.

Each shade will hold between 20 and 80 riders.

The county executive said that the shades will have a place to sit, space for the riders to put their helmets and vests and allow them also to have water dispenser.

CARPETED WITH CABROS

“The shades will be built at a workshop and then brought to the locations. The floors will be carpeted using cabros. We are planning to fix all of them in a single day,” he said.

Mr Majevdia said that City Hall engineers are in the process of coming up with designated sketch on which roads boda bodas can use within the CBD.

“We will officially announce which streets they can use once the sketch is ready. We will give it to their association which will in turn give it to them,” he said.

“We are trying to let them to regulate themselves and if they are not then we will come in. What happens now is that they are split into many places fighting for the same passengers but this will give them the chance to self-regulate and streamline the sector,” said Mr Majevdia.