Kenyan residents want new bridges as roads get blocked by floods

Date: 14/6/2012

A group of residents in Kenya are calling for the government to improve the country's transport infrastructure by building new bridges.

People living in Lari in the county of Kiambu want the Ministry of Roads to construct bridges so they can cross rivers when roads are blocked due to flooding, the Star reports.

Local leader and a parliamentary hopeful Mburu Kahangara explained that at the moment, some routes get completely blocked off when water levels rise excessively, which can cause serious inconvenience to residents.

Farmers in particular are being affected by the problem. They depend on agriculture for their livelihood, yet are unable to transport their goods for trade because of fears existing culverts will collapse under the weight of their lorries due to heavy rainfall.

Kenyans want the Ministry of Roads to allocate funds in the next fiscal year to build strong, elevated bridges that cannot be swept away by floods coming from the rivers in the valleys surrounding the constituency.

Lari residents are currently working to unblock a culvert overpass at Matathia River that became blocked by eroded soils. The river is one of the subsidiaries of Bathi River and Sasumwa dam, serving around 800 households.

"So if bridges are put in then there would no blockage of the roads. If this continues many roads will be cut off completely," said Mr Mburu.

Resident Pete Gitau pointed out it is not only farmers who are suffering due to the high water levels and blocked roads.

"When the rains come, some of the school children do not go to school because they are not able to cross over the roads," he stated.

The main rainy season in Kenya generally lasts from March until the end of May, while there is usually a shorter period of rainfall around November. These weather patterns can seriously affect travel in the country, as its roads are in poor condition and can become impossible to use.

Posted by Nick Anderson