Plans to decongest Nyamira town are underway, after the government issued a notice to people occupying land along major roads to start vacating immediately, to allow contractors to start working.
On Monday, Chief Transport officer Elias Mbau said the move is aimed at decongesting the CBD, since the town has only one major highway that connects it to other towns.
According to the officer, the exercise will see a different highway connect from Kisii-Kericho highway to Rangenya Township, hence giving a new route to track drivers who use the existing highway to connect to Kisumu.
“Plans to decongest the town by introducing an alternative route to Kisumu are now complete. What is important now is to have those occupying the demarcated area vacate without necessarily waiting for eviction. The exercise will kick off soon and we want it to end by next year,” he said.
Mbau said the move will see most businesses in the town thrive, since traffic jam will be drastically reduced as the population of the town continues to increase due to develoved governance.
“This town used to be very small but now it’s the fastest growing town in Nyanza, and the only way to improve the economy is by coming up with the highway,” he added.
The move was welcomed by a section of residents, mostly Boda Boda riders, who said accidents will be a thing of the past once the exercise is completed.
“Accidents will be a thing of the past. It has been quite difficult for motorbikes, cars and pedestrians to share a common highway. This is a good move,” said Chairman of Nyamira motorbike association Omari Gesora.