Gitaru residents raise concern over killer road that is taking lives of villagers

An incomplete interchange connecting the Northern Bypass, Southern Bypass and Limuru--Naivasha roads has turned into a death trap for residents of Gitaru in Kabete Constituency.

In the absence of the interchange, heavy trucks seeking to join the Southern bypass from the Limuru and Naivasha roads are forced to use a slip road that cuts through a densely populated area.

The stretch roughly 600 metres long is on a steep slope, meaning that heavy trucks and trailers experience brake failure causing accidents in the area.

The latest victim of the area, which has now become a black spot, is Veronica Njeri Kaniaru, who was crushed to death on April 18.

On Wednesday, April 26, angry youth barricaded the road as a way of expressing their displeasure at the slow pace of the interchange construction.

The youth had just come from digging the grave for the 62-year-old woman, who was being laid to rest on Thursday in Mutego village.

The actions of the angry youth caused a major traffic snarl-up, which stretched beyond the Sigona Golf Club on the Nairobi Limuru Road.

It took the efforts of police from the Kikuyu Police Station to disperse the youth, clear the road and restore smooth flow of traffic.

Ms Kaniaru adds to the growing list of area residents who have lost their lives, with many others getting injured along the said blackspot.

“We have buried a lot of people from this area as a result of accidents that keep occurring along this stretch. Enough is enough,” says Kirika Thuita, a civil society activist from the area.

“Many others have sustained life threatening injuries.”

He traces the genesis of the accidents to the time traffic began being redirected to the stretch, as the Limuru--Naivasha road was being constructed, about five years ago.

“As long as these heavy trucks continue using this stretch, our lives will continue being in danger,” he added.

“We cannot continue burying our people, while those in authority do nothing.”

The residents are asking the Kenya National Highways Authority (Kenha) to complete the interchange to avert accidents.