A commuter bus was set ablaze on Monday evening after it allegedly struck and killed a motorcycle rider along Kenya’s busy Thika Superhighway.
The vehicle, operated by Super Metro Sacco, caught fire near Juja Town as dozens of boda-boda riders descended on the scene. Police said the driver had pulled over after the collision, and passengers quickly disembarked.
Within minutes, witnesses said, the riders turned on the matatu, smashing its windows before setting it alight. By the time officers arrived, the bus had been reduced to a charred shell.
“The vehicle was completely destroyed. Investigations are ongoing, and action will be taken,” a police spokesperson said in a statement.
The body of the motorcyclist was taken to a nearby mortuary for post-mortem examination. The wreckage of the bus was moved to a local police station.
Escalating tensions
Fatal crashes involving motorcycles and public service vehicles are not uncommon in Nairobi and its outskirts. Riders often accuse bus drivers of reckless driving, while operators complain of boda-boda riders ignoring traffic rules.
Last month, a similar incident unfolded in Donholm, on Nairobi’s east side. There, a bus was torched by a mob after it allegedly killed a motorcyclist. Passengers managed to escape before the vehicle was engulfed in flames.
Police say such reprisals, while rare, highlight growing frustration on the roads. Kenya has one of the highest rates of road traffic fatalities in Africa, according to the World Health Organisation.
On Monday night, as traffic backed up for kilometres on Thika Road, commuters looked on helplessly as fire consumed the Super Metro bus. For many, it was a reminder of the fragile peace between two groups—matatu operators and boda-boda riders—who share the same roads, often uneasily.
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