Iconic bus companies that connected Kenya & shaped travel

For decades, long-distance transport has been the invisible engine powering Kenya’s economic and social mobility.

Over the years, fleets of buses operated by transport companies have not only shaped travel culture but also carried traders, students, families, and fortunes across vast landscapes and within Nairobi city.

For years, the companies kept families connected across generations, transporting thousands from upcountry to the city and vice versa.

Here are some companies that endured the fierce competition, shifting customer expectations, regulatory hurdles and mismanagement before meeting the inevitable end.

The rise and fall of Eldoret Express

At its peak, Eldoret Express had a fleet of more than 100 buses plying Kenyan roads and was poised to be the king of the roads.

Founded in 1982 as Eldoret Express Cooperative Company before rebranding to Eldoret Express, the company operated a fleet of Nissan UD buses that plied Nairobi to Western Kenya and the Rift Valleyroutes.

Fortunes changed in the 2010s and what was once a growing empire savouring success began to shrink.

By 2020, most of its buses were lying in yards across the country, inhabited by insects, rodents and birds with little hope of ever roaring back to life.

Manager, Joseph Ng’ang’a painted a clearer picture of the empire’s collapse in August 2020, stating that only 50 buses lay idle and in a state of disuse in the company’s Kiungani farm in Kitale with more than 80 others stalled.

At the time, the company still had a fleet of 60 buses on the road ut the number has since reduced.

Akamba Bus: When the engines went silent

Sherali Hassanali Nathoo gave Kenya a company that shaped public transport by blending comfort, reliability and order in a market dominated that had its fair share of chaos when he founded Akamba Bus company in Machakos County.

From scratch, Nathoo teamed up with his wife Zarina and sons, Moez and Karim to build a transport empire that was known for its fair pricing, reliable parcel delivery service and a fleet of well-maintained and comfortable buses operated by a professional team.

With its first headquarters in Machakos town along the busy Nairobi-Mombasa transport corridor, the company expanded rapidly to

The giant empire started wobbling in 2000, and the death of Nathoo in the same year ushered its final chapter as the engines went silent, office doors shut.

Allegations of mismanagement, family squabbles and plunder of company resources have been linked to its collapse.

Overseas Transport Company (OTC)

Overseas Transport Company (OTC) dared to venture where few others had gone-long distance buses with coverage across the East African region.

From the cities to the villages, their fleet of well-maintained buses roared and moved thousands of commuters in comfort despite the sorry state of most roads at the time.

High standards of cleanliness, reliability, comfort and fair pricing made it stand out with its hub in Nairobi.

A combination of factors including fierce competition, unfavourable government policies and a decline in management standards are linked to the decline of the company.

Its name however remains engaged in Nairobi’s history with the famous OTC bus stage bearing its name.

TAWFIQ Special Coach and the end of the road

Long before sleek buses that combine comfort, luxury and reliability took over the Mombasa-Nairobi route, Tawfiq was the undisputed king of the roads.

Its operations expanded to Western Kenya town of Busia, linking traders from Uganda with the commercial port city of Mombasa.

However, the company became notorious for tragic road accidents that claimed many lives.

The soiled reputation saw commuters embrace other alternatives with rival companies stepping up to seize control of the route.

Obuya Express

The Nairobi-Kisii route was once the stage of stiff competition as rival bus companies attempted to outdo each other in what mirrors the competitive Nairobi-Mombasa route.

The contest for dominance pitted Obuya Express, Nyakwengata, Omwabo, Matongo, Omwabo Express, Vimonya, Binyiny, Dolphin Express.

With large fleet, Obuya Express seized the crown and dominated the route.

In transport business reputation for safety is key and this is where Obuya Express did not shine.

Its buses were involved in a series of fatal accidents which saw commuters turn to rival companies, leading to its inevitable death like many other companies that went down the same route.

Nyayo Bus

Former President Daniel Arap Moi had good intentions when he launched the Nyayo Bus Service in 1986, hoping to revolutionise public transport in the country.

With a fleet of 89 buses operated by disciplined National Youth Service recruits, it rivalled the Kenya Bus Service that was a dominant player at the time.

Its initial period was marked by remarkable growth, profitability and expansion of its fleet.

It did not take long before the cancer of corruption and mismanagement that was a scourge caught up with the company.

Six years after its launch, the company came tumbling down.