Confusion and gridlock gripped Nairobi on Monday morning, just hours after transport leaders assured Kenyans that a planned nationwide matatu strike had been suspended.
The chaos has raised questions on who truly controls the Nairobi matatu industry, a sector long known for its immense influence and impact on city dwellers.
On Sunday, the Federation of Public Transport Sector (FPTS) announced that the strike, initially planned for February 2, 2026, would not proceed. The federation said the decision followed consultations involving matatu operators, boda boda riders, and security agencies. According to FPTS, the talks had yielded an agreement to pause the strike and give dialogue a chance.
“The matatu strike scheduled for Monday has been suspended to allow consultations to continue,” the federation said in a statement, assuring the public that transport services would operate normally across the country.
However, by dawn on Monday, the situation on the ground told a starkly different story. Along major highways including Waiyaki Way, Thika Road, Jogoo Road, and Outering Road, groups of Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operators staged protests, blocking roads and paralyzing traffic. Commuters were left stranded, vehicles piled up for kilometres, and passengers struggled to reach workplaces, schools, and hospitals.
In Thika Town, passengers heading to Nairobi were also stranded, with images circulating on social media showing long queues at matatu stages and frustrated commuters waiting for rides that never came.
The conflicting signals between the FPTS leadership and operators on the ground have exposed deep divisions within the matatu industry. While the federation claims to represent the interests of all operators, many saccos and route-based associations appear to act independently, often disregarding central directives.
Transport analyst Peter Mwangi says the events highlight a long-standing governance problem in the sector. “The matatu industry is highly decentralized. There’s no single authority that can enforce decisions across all operators. What we’re seeing is the result of years of informal management and weak regulation,” he said.
Government officials have also expressed frustration at the apparent communication breakdown. A senior official at the Ministry of Transport, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the government had been assured that normal operations would resume.
“We were told the strike was off. What happened this morning shows that some groups are not under the control of the federation,” the official said.
The protests, believed to have been triggered by ongoing disputes over new traffic enforcement measures, increased levies, and alleged harassment by county and national authorities.
Some operators accuse the government of failing to address their grievances, such as road safety and the boda boda menace, despite repeated promises.
Anti-riot police were deployed across Nairobi’s major highways to clear blocked roads and restore order, but the damage had already been done. Thousands of commuters arrived late to work, and businesses in the central business district reported reduced activity due to the transport paralysis.
By Monday afternoon, FPTS officials reiterated their call for calm and urged operators to return to work, but many Kenyans remained skeptical. The morning’s events have left commuters questioning whether any single body truly speaks for the matatu industry — or whether the sector has become too fragmented to control.
For now, Nairobi’s streets have returned to a cautious normal.
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