Rironi-Mau Summit Highway: Government Plans Cable Cars, Luxury Hotels at Great Rift Valley Viewpoint

Transport CS Davis Chirchir announced plans to install cable cars at the Great Rift Valley Viewpoint along the Nairobi-Nakuru highway.The government also intends to redesign curio shops and attract investors to build hotels at the scenic stopover.The upgrade plans come amid concerns from traders whose businesses have already been affected by the ongoing highway expansion.

Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) Davis Chirchir disclosed the plans during an interview with Enock Sikolia, saying the cable car system would link the A8 and A8 South sections of the highway across the escarpment, allowing visitors to travel in suspended cabins with aerial views of the Great Rift Valley, Mount Longonot and the surrounding landscape.

What else will be constructed? Beyond the cable cars, the CS outlined intentions to overhaul the existing curio shops and open the site to private hotel investors. The goal, he said, is to give visitors greater incentive to linger at the viewpoint rather than pass through without stopping. “We plan to modernise the curio shops to encourage tourists to stop, explore and spend more time at the viewpoint. We also intend to attract investors to build hotels and tap into the Rift Valley’s God-given tourist attractions,” Chirchir added.

However, the transformation plans have drawn concern from traders who have operated at the viewpoint for years. The ongoing highway works have already led to the demolition of several curio shops and business premises along the site. Vendors selling souvenirs, traditional ornaments, hand carvings and other locally made goods have previously warned that the changes could strip hundreds of people of their livelihoods, as the viewpoint has long served as a reliable market for both local and international tourists.

The viewpoint upgrade forms part of the broader Rironi-Mau Summit highway expansion project, one of the most significant road infrastructure programmes currently under way in Kenya. The project involves upgrading the A8 highway stretching from Rironi, on the outskirts of Nairobi, to Mau Summit in Nakuru County, covering a distance of approximately 174 kilometres.

The expansion is designed to ease chronic congestion on one of Kenya’s busiest transport corridors, which serves as a key link between Nairobi and western Kenya. Works along the route include the widening of carriageways, construction of new bridges, improvement of road safety features, and the realignment of sections that pass through hilly terrain including the escarpment area.

SOURCE:https://www.facebook.com/100067867727102/posts/1515017850770458/?app=fbl

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