Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) has announced that it will close a section of Ngong Road to motorists on Sunday, July 23 to pave way for the erection of a footbridge.
KURA, through a public notice issued on Friday, indicated that the section of Ngong Road will not be accessible to traffic from 9am to 6pm as the works to erect the bridge proceed.
According to KURA Director-General Silas Kinoti, authority workers will build a steel deck footbridge to allow pedestrians to cross the road at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) stage.
Those heading to Nairobi CBD on Sunday will be diverted to Valley Road and those heading to Mombasa Road will divert to Raila Odinga Way (former Mbagathi Way) then Langata Road.
Motorists and pedestrians have been asked to be cautious when nearing the construction site and strictly adhere to the diversions as directed by traffic marshals and signs available.
Read More
The new bridge is expected to enhance the safety of pedestrians while crossing Ngong Road.
“We request the public to be patient as we work to enhance pedestrian safety and urban mobility,” said KURA in its notice.
In July 2022, Nairobi Hospital had protested the construction of the footbridge saying it posed as a security threat to the health facility and asked KURA to suspend the project.
Hospital CEO James Nyamongo had demanded that works on the footbridge be suspended saying that it exposed members of the public to radioactive material from its cancer center.
Nyamongo also argued that the construction exposed Nairobi Hospital’s power and oxygen plants to potential attacks from terrorists and other criminals.
But in a rejoinder, KURA dismissed the claims saying the authority had moved the bridge 50 meters away from fence as had been requested by the management of Nairobi Hospital.
KURA indicated that all stakeholders had been consulted to pave way for the construction.
