The Government's plan to convert the two-lane Ngong Road
into a four-lane dual carriageway has begun. It is not quite clear to most
people whether this expansion project will terminate on Ring Road in Kilimani
leading to Yaya Centre or will proceed all the way to Karen.
But, the public has to deal with the necessary
inconveniences that come with such projects.
The beautiful trees that previously adorned the road have
been felled and the concrete jungle now stands bare; patients visiting Coptic
Hospital especially have to deal with thick dust and smoke emissions floating
in the air; and motorists have to deal with long traffic snarl ups and overlaps
all day long.
Even though it is in the Government's interest that this
road project will not only modernize the general infrastructure but also ease
the traffic flow and travel time, one would wonder why the project execution
did not start off at the Junction Mall as a short-term solution to traffic
congestion.
At the moment, it is quite possible to drive for 30 minutes
from CBD to Kenya Science and then get stuck in traffic for two hours before
turning off to either Naivasha or Ngong Road despite the presence of traffic
police.