Dualing Project: Tree Felling Along State House Road in Nairobi Sparks Public Backlash

Residents and commentators in Nairobi have raised concerns over tree felling along State House Road, after images circulating on social media showed large piles of cut branches lining sections of the route.

Commentator Ory Okolloh-Mwangi shared photographs of the debris on X, describing the scene as a mix of felled vegetation, diplomatic convoys and congestion from school buses and public service vehicles using the road.

The clearing works are linked to a road expansion project identified in posts by Dr. Eng. John Mativo as the Traffic Circulation and Capacity Enhancement of State House Road, carrying an estimated budget of about KSh 1.6 billion (approximately $12.4 million).

According to details shared from tender documents, the project is intended to increase the road's capacity and improve traffic flow along the corridor. The proposed scope includes several components.

These are expanding sections of the road to add traffic lanes where feasible, effectively creating dual carriageway sections in parts of the route.

The plan also covers improving major intersections and traffic circulation, upgrading drainage, and constructing or enhancing pedestrian walkways and other road safety features along the corridor.

A fifth component focuses on enhancing connectivity between State House Road and the newly built Upper Hill-Kenyatta Avenue Viaduct, along with the surrounding road network in the area.

The felled trees have drawn criticism from some observers, including transparency activist Nelson Amenya, who argued that dual carriageway expansion works were removing trees that could otherwise have been preserved through alternative road designs.

Amenya said the approach favoured widening the road over expanding non-motorised transport infrastructure such as walkways and cycling paths, which typically require less vegetation clearance.

Road expansion projects in Nairobi have periodically drawn similar criticism in recent years, particularly where tree clearance precedes construction in established residential and diplomatic neighbourhoods.

State House Road runs through one of Nairobi's more tightly secured districts, home to diplomatic missions, government offices and State House itself, and typically carries restricted, closely monitored traffic.