Salgaa residents and users of the Nakuru-Eldoret highway have asked the government to revive the construction of a trauma hospital around the area and also expand the road.
The residents have been calling for a trauma centre since 2009 when a tanker exploded and claimed 130 lives.
Speaking at an event on Sunday organised to mark World Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims, residents said the promise for such a facility at Salgaa was made by the late former President Mwai Kibaki's administration.
Shadrack Chepkwony, the chair for boda boda operators at Salgaa, said it should not take the government more than 10 years to set up a trauma hospital.
"We have been diligently turning up to rescue people from accident scenes but there seems to be little concern for our wellbeing. We need counselling," he said.
Mololine chairman Njoroge Bumasu underscored the need for the facility and standby ambulances. "We appreciate government efforts to curb road accidents but they can't be entirely done away with. We need trained rescuers and the trauma center," he said.
Bumasu said the country's continued economic and infrastructural growth should factor in such needs. "We are expanding our roads as the number of vehicles in the country increase. If our response and mitigation measures are not at par with the growth, we will keep seeing more accidents," he added.
Central Rift Matatu Owners Association chairperson Stephen Muli called for the reactivation of first aid containers placed at designated points along major roads, especially during the festive season.
"As we wait for the trauma centre to be set up we need to have full-time standby responders at black spots."
Rongai subcounty police commander Wilberforce Sicharani lauded the county fire and disaster management department, saying it has been among the first responders to accident scenes.
