Transport along the Nairobi-Nakuru highway was paralysed for the better part of Saturday after the road was closed down to allow rally cars to drive from Naivasha to Soysambu in Nakuru.
The move caused a major traffic snarl-up as police mounted a roadblock near the Naivasha junction leading to a major crisis.
For hours, stranded motorists camped by the roadside while others were forced to use the Naivasha-Kirima road to access their destinations.
However, traders along the section of the road were left smiling all the way to the bank as the stranded motorists sought meals and other essential services from them.
On Monday, the government gazetted several roads in the country that would be closed down this week to give the drivers competing in WRC the right of way.
According to one of the affected passengers John Wasike, the closure of the road had inconvenienced them as they headed to Kakamega.
He noted that many of them would be caught by the 7 pm curfew that has been slapped on several counties in Western Kenya.
“The rally is good but the organisers should consider other motorists who have nothing to do with this exercise,” he said.
Another driver Simon Kuria wondered why the road was still closed by 11 am yet the rally cars were already in Soysambu.
“This event has created a business for some people and ended up messing the lives of hundreds of others and this is unfair,” he said.
On her part, Jane Nyambura said that she was headed to Nakuru for a critical appointment but the closure of the road had shattered her plans.
“The closure of the road will cost many people and businesses dearly and it’s unfair to concentrate on the rally at the expense of others,” she said.
Speaking on phone, Naivasha OCPD Samuel Waweru defended the move adding that it had been gazetted earlier so as to give the motorists time to plan and reroute.
“We have directed motorists to use alternative routes like the one through Kinangop as the road will remain closed until the rally cars are back in the evening,” he said.
