The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) on Thursday, May 11, cautioned the public over snarl-up along the busy Mai Mahiu-Rironi Road.
In a statement, the authority noted that the snarl-up that was quickly building up from midday resulted from a truck overturning on the road shoulder.
KeNHA, as a result, rushed to the scene of the accident and estimated that recovery time would be approximately an hour.
"We notify the general public of the ongoing recovery of a trailer that derailed and tipped over the road shoulder along the escarpment route, Mai Mahiu - Rironi Road, causing a traffic snarl-up.
"This is expected to be completed within an hour," clarified the authority.
The highway connects Naivasha, Mai Mahiu and Nakuru, to the Inland Container Depot (ICD) and the Industrial Park in Naivasha.
Mostly populated by transit trucks, it also plays a major link role for traffic destined for far-flung areas such as Narok, South Western Kenya and Northern Tanzania.
In 2020, Kenya signed the Public-Private Partnership(PPP) pact titled the Paris Deal, aimed at upgrading the road to a 7-metre carriageway with 2-metre shoulders on both sides.
Severe Cracks
The Mai Mahiu region has been dodged by environmental disasters, including severe cracks that developed along Mai-Mahiu – Narok route forcing KeNHA to close the road for four days since Sunday, April 30.
At the time of closure, motorists were diverted to longer alternative routes to pave the way for repair works by engineers from the authority.
“KeNHA would like to notify motorists and the general public about the Mai Mahiu - Narok Highway closure.
“This closure has been occasioned by a severe crack that has occurred six kilometres from Mai Mahiu Town towards Mai Mahiu, cutting across the road and thus rendering the road unsafe to motorists,” KeNHA cautioned at the time.
The cracks were caused by heavy rains that pounded the area.