Fresh concerns over safety on Outering Road resurfaced on Tuesday when residents from Eastlands joined engineers from the Kenya Urban Roads Authority for a long walk along the highway to assess its condition.
The team moved across several sections of the 13-kilometre stretch and found key safety installations either missing or not working, raising questions about the state of one of Nairobi’s busiest roads.
The joint exercise came after locals submitted a petition saying the road had slowly become unsafe due to poor lighting, damaged guardrails, blocked drainage and incomplete footbridges. They said the deterioration had led to accidents, insecurity and areas where pedestrians felt exposed.
During the tour from Taj Mall to Donholm, residents showed engineers points where streetlights had gone off and places they believed had become hotspots for vandalism. Many of the damaged guardrails were also inspected.
Kura engineer Justus Onyinkwa, who headed the inspection, said the issues were known and blamed a big part of the problem on constant destruction of public property.
“Those are the realities; you can’t run away from them,” he said, noting that most of the incidents, including vandalism and some accidents, tend to occur at night.
He explained that Kura had repaired streetlights many times, but underground power cables were often dug up and stolen, leaving the road in darkness. Residents told him that dim areas had contributed to insecurity and night accidents.
Onyinkwa said the slow pace of some works was linked to limited funding, and urged residents to push their elected leaders for more money. He said Kura receives a much smaller budget share compared to other road agencies.
He added that to reduce vandalism, the authority was preparing to shift to solar-powered streetlights and increase patrols along the road.
“Solar lighting removes reliance on underground cabling, which has been the biggest target,” he said.
Damaged guardrails were another major concern. City Capital, the company responsible for routine maintenance, said many rails were hit during crashes. The firm has proposed replacing them with stronger crash barriers, a plan Kura is assessing.
Footbridges also came up, with residents questioning missing canopies. Onyinkwa said some designs did not include them, but Kura would revisit the matter. He said some bridges had been taken over by informal traders, making it harder for people to use them safely.
City Capital said they were up to date with other maintenance duties such as cleaning drainage, marking the road and general upkeep.
The firm’s representative, Charles Maina, said lighting was not part of their contract and that poor visibility had fuelled night-time accidents. The site manager, Robert Ouko, said that aside from guardrails, other elements within their scope were in good condition.
The inspection followed a letter by the Voices of Eastlands Community Network, which claimed that the road—built at a cost of about Sh11 billion and opened in 2015—had not delivered the benefits people expected.
Damaged guard rails at a section of Outering Ring Road on December 2, 2025. PHOTO/HandoutThey cited reports of crime, accidents, non-functional streetlights and incomplete footbridges. The group had given Kura 21 days to respond and said they would escalate the matter if the feedback did not address their concerns.
In its written reply, Kura said safety on Outering Road was a national concern and listed actions taken to improve pedestrian movement. The agency said 17 facilities—footbridges, underpasses and walkways—had been constructed at intervals of under 500 metres, matching international standards.
Kura said some users still ignored safety rules.
“We have stakeholders who have refused to use the provided facilities,” the agency said, adding that matatus stopping in the wrong places and traders blocking walkways forced people onto the road.
The authority noted that vandalism of lights, footbridge parts and other installations remained a setback. Kura said it was working with NTSA, the police, NAMATA and the Nairobi County Government on safety measures.
Looking ahead, the agency said the Bus Rapid Transit system planned for the road’s median would help manage traffic and protect pedestrians once rolled out.
“Plans are at an advanced stage, and by 2026 you will see this programme commencing,” the agency said.
