Along the busy Nairobi–Nakuru Highway, the popular Great Rift Valley Viewpoint near Kimende has long been a must-stop for families and travellers. For decades, motorists, families, and locals pulled over to take in the dramatic panoramic views of the Great Rift Valley escarpment, snap photos of the vast landscape stretching toward Mount Longonot and beyond, and browse the cluster of curio shops selling soapstone carvings, Maasai shukas, beads, bangles, and other handmade souvenirs.
That familiar scene changed abruptly. The long-standing temporary curio shops and viewing structures at the viewpoint have been demolished to make way for the ongoing expansion of the Rironi–Mau Summit highway.
Construction crews cleared the roadside structures as part of the dual carriageway upgrade of the A8 corridor. Videos and reports from the site show piles of timber, wooden frames, broken concrete, shattered tiles, and debris where the shops once stood. Excavators and workers in reflective gear continue clearing the area amid earthworks and roadbed preparation, with terraced sections and boundary posts already visible.
The project forms part of the wider Rironi–Mau Summit highway expansion. It is a major infrastructure initiative covering roughly 175 kilometres. President William Ruto launched the dualling works in November 2025 and directed contractors to complete the Rironi–Nakuru–Mau Summit section by June 2027.
The upgraded road is designed to ease chronic congestion, improve traffic flow, and enhance safety on one of Kenya’s busiest and most accident-prone corridors, which links Nairobi to the Rift Valley, western Kenya. and the broader Northern Corridor trade route.
Impact on traders and families
For the vendors who depended on the steady stream of visitors stopping to admire the view, the demolitions have meant the sudden loss of their livelihoods. Close to 300 people were historically involved in businesses around the site, supporting families, employing workers, educating children and sustaining mothers and young people in the surrounding community.
As earthworks progress and the dual carriageway takes shape, the once-bustling cluster of curio shops at the Kimende/Rift Valley Viewpoint is gone. What remains is an open stretch of construction site overlooking the same breathtaking valley that drew generations of travellers to pause. Whether the finished highway will restore a dignified space for both the view and the vendors who once thrived there remains an open question for project planners and the community.
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