• The implementation of the revised speed limiting device standard KS 2295:2018 was to take effect from December 1 last year.
• The authority and the Kenya Bureau of Standards directed that all PSVs install the limiters before June 3.
Image: FILE
Turf wars at the National Transport and Safety Authority have delayed the implementation of the new speed limiters, the Star has established.
Sources claim that the service terms of Director General Francis Meja and that of the Director of Motor Vehicle Inspection Gerald Wangai have impeded smooth operations at the agency.
The authority has thrice postponed the deadline for having the new gadgets fitted in all public service vehicles and in those weighing above 3,048 tonnes.
The implementation of the revised speed limiting device standard KS 2295:2018 was to take effect from December 1 last year.
The authority and the Kenya Bureau of Standards directed that all PSVs install the limiters before June 3.
But this date was however pushed to August 5, with the authority explaining that the move had been occasioned by wider consultations with stakeholders.
Though the August 5 deadline has since passed, not much has been done with regard to the implementation.
Those in the know have alleged that cartels with business interests have made it difficult to enforce the deadline.
Sources said that by last March deadline, only six companies had been licensed to sell the new gadget.
The number has since jumped to 20 suppliers while more are still pushing for the license.
“Those waiting to get the licence are ensuring the deadline is not enforced, it is a big fight,” a source said.
Meja, however, dismissed the claims of infighting saying there is no delay.
“As far as I am concerned, I am not aware of any delays,” Meja told the Star yesterday on the phone.
The upgraded limiters have smart sim-cards that can transmit data on speed, the location of the car, the driver and the Sacco the vehicle belongs to.
They will also be linked to drivers' smart licenses.
Last year, NTSA, Kebs and the Department for Infrastructure directed that vehicles above the 3.5 tonnage install tamper-proof speed limiters synchronised with the authority servers.
The revised speed limiting device standards KS 2295:2018 is an improved version of the first edition KS 2295:2011 which came into effect on April 1, 2014.
However, currently, the PSV vehicles and those with above 3.5tonnage are using both the 2011 and 2018 KS regime since there are no servers at NTSA to oversee the implementation of the new speed limiters.
“Due to lack of enforcement mechanism of the new speed governors, matatu owners are renewing the old licenses at Sh5,000. At times only permits are displayed on the windscreen but there is no physical gadget installed,” a source confided to the Star.
Currently, some 24 suppliers licensed to sell the new gadgets.
They include Dalcom Kenya Limited, Saferider Management Systems Limited, Pinnacle Systems Limited, Mock Electrical and Electronic Co Ltd, Hustle Yangu Limited and Orient Scientific Limited among others.
Through an executive order President Uhuru Kenyatta on January 21 moved NTSA to the Ministry of Interior and National Coordination from the Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development.