A shocking incident was captured on a dashcam over the weekend along Nairobi’s Thika Superhighway, where a motorist was seen driving on the wrong side of the road.
The reckless driver, who was heading towards the city centre, disrupted traffic and nearly caused a serious head-on collision near the Safari Park Hotel.
Footage obtained by Kenyans.co.ke shows a motorcyclist trying to avoid an oncoming vehicle, but crashing into the back of a Toyota Probox instead and falling onto the road. The Probox driver had swerved to avoid a head-on collision with the motorist travelling in the wrong direction.
Instead of stopping to help, the wrong-way motorist sped off, leaving the injured rider on the road. Moments later, the Probox driver could be seen inspecting the damage to his vehicle, but he did not offer any assistance to the victim.
Kenyans Reaction
The incident drew sharp criticism from road safety advocates, with Sikika Road Safety terming the motorist’s behaviour reckless and unacceptable.
“(Number plate withheld), shame on you. You cannot use the wrong side of the road on a busy highway like Thika Road, cause an accident, and drive off as if nothing happened. You can run, but you cannot hide,” the lobby group stated.
Another road user also weighed in, noting that regardless of the rider’s actions, the blame squarely lay with the motorist for driving on the wrong side.
“No matter how much blame you guys direct towards the nduthi guy in the name of distance and indicator lights, it does not sanitise the guy driving on the wrong side of the road,” the user remarked.
After the video went viral, Kenyans took to social media to express mixed reactions, with some shifting blame to the rider over his road awareness and handling.
A section of users faulted him for not keeping a safe tailgating distance from the Probox and failing to notice the hazard lights it had engaged.
“Nduthi guy was solely responsible for the accident. He did not keep sufficient braking distance,” one comment read, while another advised, “Always keep a safe distance and check indicators. Remember, you are the only sane man on the road.”
Car Torched
Meanwhile, a Land Rover truck was, on Saturday night, torched by boda boda riders, causing hours-long traffic along the busy Thika Superhighway. According to reports, the incident was precipitated by the vehicle being involved in an accident with a boda boda.
The burning, which took place near the National Youth Service (NYS), attracted a mammoth crowd and led to a traffic snarl-up on the highway.
