Transport CS James Macharia on Thursday confirmed that the government is set to buy 30 BRT buses from South Africa in June.
According to the CS, the new buses will cost roughly Ksh500 million and will be deployed on the already marked Thika Superhighway.
“I sent my Principal Secretary to negotiate transactions for the purchase of the buses in South Africa. If all goes according to plan, the first batch will arrive by the end of June.
“We shall be looking for the balance from various sources, including local assemblers such as Isuzu. Already, we have engaged their management to start preparing for the next batch,” revealed Macharia.
[caption caption="Transport CS James Macharia"]
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Regarding uncertainty surrounding how the project will be run, he assured the Matatu Owners Association (MOA) that they would be fully involved in running the project as opposed to earlier reports that the government would take over operations.
“Next Wednesday, we will meet MOA chairman Simon Kimutai to discuss the way forward in terms of them participating,” added the CS.
When the BRT is fully operational, Nairobi will require 900 buses in all its transport corridors.
Mr Macharia also stated that he was fully aware of the state of roads in the city and construction works will start as early as next week.
Several roads will be recarpeted in the city centre as well as in Eastlands where the heavy rains have left feeder roads in a dilapidated state.
He also spoke on car-free days to be introduced in the Central Business District (CBD) and Westlands where Wednesdays and Saturdays have been proposed as the days when motorists will have to give up their vehicles saying it is aimed at decongesting the city.
“It is a Nairobi County initiative that is being supported by my ministry,” he said.
[caption caption="BRT lane on Thika Road"]
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