High Court Judge Chacha Mwita has directed 13 matatu Saccos to enter negotiations with EPRA and Nairobi County after they filed a application challenging the sudden restrictions on their operations.
The transport firms moved to court seeking urgent protection against directives issued by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) and Nairobi County Government, which bar them from picking and dropping passengers at petrol stations within the Nairobi Central Business District.
The petitioners ENA Coach, Easy Coach, Mololine, North Rift, GTS Supreme Sacco, Nenus Shuttle, Transline Classic, Prestige Limited, Kangema Sacco and Super Premium T&T told the court that the ban was abrupt, flawed, and economically disruptive. They warned that enforcing the directive at the height of the festive season would cripple the transport sector, leave thousands of travellers stranded, and cause them enormous financial losses.
Through Advocate Danstan Omari, the companies said they had been ordered to halt operations at fuel stations immediately, yet there was no evidence linking their activities to safety risks within Nairobi’s petrol stations. They argued that the same services continue normally in other towns, questioning why Nairobi alone was imposing such restrictions on long-distance and shuttle operators.
The firms emphasized that their operations had never been associated with any safety incidents and accused the authorities of targeting them unfairly. They told the court that without urgent conservatory orders, their businesses risked grinding to a halt and commuters would suffer the consequences during the busiest travel period of the year.
Advocates Omari and Stanley Kinyanjui pleaded with the court to intervene, saying any delay in hearing the matter would render the petition useless, as the operators were already facing imminent enforcement action.
Justice Mwita directed the companies and the Nairobi County Government to engage in negotiations and file an update before the matter proceeds further.
