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That the government has taken several far-reaching measures to improve transport infrastructure in capital is too important a development to go unremarked. 

For starters, plans to modernise commuter rail transport were unveiled last week. Although the Budget for the project is yet to be made public, the fact that the journey to building a modern rail system in Nairobi has started is in itself significant at many levels.

One of the biggest challenges to the smooth flow of traffic in Nairobi is that there are too many private cars competing for space with matatus and mini-buses with limited carrying capacities. As a result, roads have become perennially clogged despite expansion of road infrastructure in and around the capital. What is needed to decongest roads is a rethink of the entire public transport system, including the idea of having a train in addition to rapid mass transit buses that should replace matatus.

Another important development is the completion of the Greenpark Bus Terminus for Public Service Vehicles. Whereas the design and aesthetics could have been improved, the public eagerly awaits to see if the idea will work to decongest the city.  When the pilot was conducted earlier in the year, there were numerous bottlenecks that were noted which interfered with flow of vehicles into and out of the terminus. The Nairobi Metropolitan Service will have done well if it has addressed those bottlenecks.

These developments come against the background of test runs on the Nairobi Expressway, which is part of the holistic approach to solve Nairobi’s transport nightmare. Already, users have asked the government to review the toll charges with a view to encouraging more motorists to use the expressway. That way, other roads will be decongested while the government will collect more revenue from increased usage, rather than from high charges.

If all these initiatives are properly co-ordinated, they have the potential to transform Nairobi and make it a world-class city with predictable travel times. They will also address chaos that has made navigating around the city difficult for many city residents. The end result will be increased productivity since workers will spend less time in traffic.

The key thing, however, is to ensure that the various projects dovetail and complement each other to make connections seamless and reduce travel downtimes.