Different neighborhoods in Nairobi have a distinguished way of identifying their matatus.
However, mature people will see that it is annoying and they will avoid such matatus at all costs.
These “annoying” cultures include:
Loud music:
Young people will always feel at the top of the world when they board matatus that are playing loud music. In such matatus you cannot even receive a phone call because it is difficult to communicate. This is one reason Nairobi grownups will avoid such vehicles and opt for the traditional quiet buses like the KBS instead.
“Obscene” video mixes:
Some of these matatus have huge screens which play music videos that have women dancing nude or semi-nude. This culture is embarrassing especially if a parent is commuting with the family. The old people will be heard shouting at the driver to turn off such music.
However, these videos seem attractive to the young folks who will wait until that favourite matatu shows up.
Meaningless graffiti:
For these matatus to look attractive, they are coated with colourful stickers apparently to stand out or to communicate a message. Some of these stickers ‘scare’ away the grown-ups of Nairobi as many think that some of the messages are inappropriate.
Overlapping:
This is one culture that is actually a nuisance because this overlapping is what causes unnecessary traffic snarl-ups. However, the impatient young people see these vehicles as the best avenue to get to town ‘Asap’ when they even don’t have important business to attend to.