Cartels plan to sabotage new bus system: Ondieki

Cartels are planning to frustrate plans by Nairobi County to restore order to the capital’s transport sector.

County Executive for roads and transport Evans Ondieki said yesterday he would not back down on plans to introduce a mass transit bus system in the county.

Mr Ondieki said officials at City Hall had information that some Members of the County Assembly were being bribed to lobby against the new buses.

“I have no business here if I bring no change. The governor is trying to transform Nairobi into an ultra-modern city and we will not back down now,” he said, adding plans for the commuter bus service were at an advanced stage.

The County Assembly has already approved the introduction of the 200 buses with a capacity of more than 62 passengers.

The plan envisages that the smaller buses and matatus, which have been blamed for perennial traffic jams and chaos, will be pushed out of the CBD.

The older players will be allocated terminuses outside the CBD where the new buses will pick up and drop off passengers.

The county will also introduce a special policing unit to man bus terminuses.

Mr Ondieki announced that a dog unit is expected to start patrolling the roads on Sunday and the handlers were being trained.

The plan will see dogs aid traffic officers assigned to major roads in the city.

He said that the dogs, acquired at a cost of about Sh100,000 on average, were trained to deal with touts who hang precariously out of matatus, petty thieves and purse snatchers at terminals.