Matatus return to Nakuru CBD 2 years after eviction

A spotcheck by Citizen Digital on Wednesday morning showed that matatu operators returned to their old designated terminus at the heart of the CBD. 

The move comes a day after Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika toured the 4 matatu termini of KFA, Ziwani, Railways and Gateiguru in the outskirts of Nakuru Town and assured matatu operators that proper structures will be put in place to ensure matatu operators have a centralized terminus equipped with social amenities. 

Kihika assured the operators that public participation will take place to ensure the operators are satisfied with the new modern stage. 

The eviction of Matatus from Nakuru CBD was effected in 2020, during the tenure of former Governor Lee Kinyanjui. 

The issue has been a top agenda for Governor Kihika who before her election had promised to listen to  the plight of matatu operators. 

The eviction saw matatu operators on different occasions lament over lack of proper amenities in the new designated stages, poor street lighting and minimal returns in their business. 

In September 2020, the operators staged protests to implore the then county boss to allow them resume operations in the Central Business District. 

However, their concerns were ignored as measures had already been put in place to evict them and implemented. 

Nakuru, albeit the resistance from matatu operators, was the first county that ensured  matatu operations were  conducted outside the central business district.