- NTSA will be returned to the Ministry of the Interior.
- Re-testing of all PSV and heavy commercial drivers, postponed after outcry, will be implemented.
Image: FILE
Kenyans are facing likely chaos in the roads after Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen announced the return of stringent rules to tame road carnage.
New rules on drunk driving and medical testing of all drivers for licence renewal will be introduced.
Resistance is expected because matatu operators and other stakeholders in the industry have opposed the rules, citing a lack of consultation.
Other road users, including heavy commercial vehicles and long-distance drivers, are affected and also could oppose them.
They plan a meeting to discuss the issue.
The move follows a series of major accidents that shocked Kenya. The latest was the death of 11 students on Monday night in the collision of a Kenyatta University bus and a trailer on the Nairobi-Mombasa highway.
Murkomen said the decision was made after deliberations with Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki.
Among others, the re-testing of all PSV and heavy commercial drivers vehicles will be implemented immediately. It had been postponed after sector outcry.
Drivers had threatened to go on strike. All stakeholders are expected to comply and cooperate.
The National Transport and Safety Authority will be returned to the Ministry of Interior from Transport.
This will achieved through an executive order.
"We are going to establish a mechanism whereby the previous directive to remove NTSA from enforcement will be vacated. A collaborative regime between NTSA and NPS will be put in place for more efficient enforcement,” Murkomen said.
"You will be seeing a return of the NTSA working with traffic police to enforce traffic safety on our roads as soon as possible," he said in a statement.
The CS said his ministry and the Interior will put in place a collaborative regime between the NTSA and the National Police Service for more efficient enforcement.
This means NTSA will be moved to the Ministry of Interior for ease of operations.
Murkomen said officials have progressed with the development of draft rules and regulations on drunk driving as well as the operation of heavy commercial vehicles and motor vehicle inspection.
They will be presented to the parliamentary Committee on Delegated Legislation and Transport within the first week of April.
The rules will address both the behavioural and mechanical risks on the roads, Murkomen said.
“We have finalised drafting the School Transport Rules aimed at better regulating and enhancing safety in the transportation of our children.”
New provisions will anchor the usage of vehicular telematic technology, a system enabling close monitoring of vehicles from a distance. The standard is being finalised by the Kenya Bureau of Standards, he said.
The rules will make it mandatory for those building school buses to include materials and technology to protect passengers in case of accidents and introduce vehicle attendants for pre-primary and primary schoolchildren.
Safety features will be added to school vehicles, including red light indicators, stop arms and CCTV. There will be stronger requirements for the development and implementation of school transport operations policy and safer procedures for the operation of school vehicles.
Murkomen said following approval from the National Treasury, the Ministry, through the NTSA, will soon conclude a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement for an instant fine system and a drivers’ demerit point system/
Drivers will be profiling through capturing their driving history. Speed enforcement cameras will be installed on all major roads and highways.
Piloting of the cameras is underway countrywide.
The Cabinet has also approved establishment of the Kenya Transport Accident Investigation Bureau. It will be an independent and autonomous agency to probe road, rail and water transport accidents.
The bill is with the Attorney-General for publication.
“This Bureau will work independently and thoroughly investigate all transport-related accidents and make recommendations to stem the rising fatalities,” Murkomen said.
Only drivers who are medically fit will be licensed to drive
NTSA will implement medical testing of all drivers as required by Section 105A(1) and (2) and Rule 30(4) of the Traffic (Driving Schools, Driving Instructors and Driving License) Rules 202 before any new licenses are issued and old ones renewed.
Kindiki announced an immediate of a nationwide crackdown to curb road accidents.
The CS said it will target all unroadworthy vehicles (private, public, institutional), drivers, riders and pedestrians.
The CS directed law enforcement agencies across the country to immediately develop and implement a program for Traffic Law enforcement to stem the tide of deaths and injuries on the road.
"We must obey traffic rules, we must all work together and clean our roads from all manner of rogue road users who are careless," Kindiki said.
NTSA said that from January to February 2024, road accidents across the country have claimed 649 lives. The statistics are an increase over the 623 recorded during the same period last year.