As you drive past the bustling Kiondoo Centre along the Nakuru–Nairobi highway and branch off toward Nakuru Specialist Hospital, the scene gradually shifts.

A well-paved tarmac road unfolds ahead, running parallel to the perimeter fence of the Kenya Defence Forces Barracks.

Joseph Mureithi, explains that the road has earned a new nickname in the community—the Bypass—because it connects Kiondoo Centre to Mashini Centre and is now the preferred route over the deteriorated Mbaruk road.

The stretch of road connecting Kiondoo Center and Mashini center. Photo taken on May 7,2025.

Photo credit: BRET SANYA/MTAA WANGU

However, the road has become a menace due to the electricity poles on it.

“Just last Friday (May 2), we had a terrible accident,” Joseph recounts grimly. “A boda boda rider crashed into one of the poles while trying to avoid oncoming traffic. It was tragic. The road’s only been open for just over a month, and already we’ve lost a life because of this issue.”

Waithera Martha vividly remembers the aftermath of that accident.

“It was around 7 p.m when word spread that there had been an accident. When I got to the scene, it was horrifying—there was blood on the road, and the pole was damaged. The rider had hit it head-on while trying to avoid a vehicle. He suffered serious head injuries and sadly didn’t make it.”

She pauses before concluding, “We’re thankful to finally have a proper road, but these electricity poles are a real danger. Something needs to be done before more lives are lost.”

When Mtaa Wangu first strated driving on the road, we noticed an electricity pole that is dangerously close to the roadside. At first, it seems like a one-off oversight.

But as we continue driving, it becomes clear this isn’t an isolated incident.

The poles begin to appear more frequently and more boldly, some intruding so far into the tarmac that vehicles must take turns squeezing past.

At one point, we’re forced to stop and wait for a lorry to pass before we can proceed.

A tarmac road constructed around an electricity pole in the Lanet area. Photo taken on May 7,2025.

Photo credit: BRET SANYA/MTAA WANGU

Elijah Mburu, a long-time resident of Ndege Ndimu, expresses mixed feelings about the road.

“The road was completed a month and a half ago and we were genuinely happy since it’s a vital link for the wider Lanet area. But to have electricity poles right in the middle of it? That’s just frustrating. It really makes you question how much planning actually went into this project,” he says.

Elijah notes that traffic along the road peaks at around 6 p.m., and the misplaced poles only add to the chaos. “Drivers have to slow down and carefully negotiate around the poles. It’s become a daily headache.”

Mashini Estate: Beautiful air, terrible roads and one brave matatu

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Leleti Jassor