The Ministry of Transport has dispatched a multi-agency team to scrutinise accident-prone areas following a recent surge in road accidents across the country.
In a statement on Monday, August 12, Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir said the team must complete its investigation within seven days and submit technical recommendations to help curb accidents.
As part of the probe, the officials will reconstruct accident scenes to establish the exact causes.
"Following this spike in crashes involving public service vehicles, private and commercial vehicles, officials drawn from various agencies are conducting safety audits on the road segments to identify safety deficiencies and to reconstruct the scenes," Chirchir stated.
"The team is expected to complete the exercise within seven days and submit technical recommendations for implementation to avert unnecessary loss of lives," he added.
According to the CS, 2,933 road fatalities have been recorded since the start of the year, with 80 reported in the past four days alone.
The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to long-term measures, including stricter enforcement of road safety laws, regulations for school transport and commercial vehicles, enhanced vehicle inspection standards, and tougher penalties for drunk driving, to help curb the incidents.
Meanwhile, the ministry has pledged to ramp up efforts to address several long-standing infrastructural challenges that have been plaguing the roads for decades, such as the reconstruction of the Nithi Bridge, which is considered one of the black spots, and also dualing the Rironi-Mau summit road.
"As a ministry, we will continue working with all stakeholders to implement both long- and medium-term measures outlined in Kenya's National Road Safety Action Plan 2024-2028, within the available resources," the CS stated.
Chirchir urged all transport stakeholders and road users, including drivers, pedestrians, boda boda riders, and cyclists, to remain vigilant and strictly adhere to traffic laws to reverse the recent worrying trend, which he described as highly preventable.
"This holistic and collaborative approach will go a long way in reducing fatalities and injuries on our roads. We note that road traffic accidents are not only predictable but also preventable if all road users play their part," he said.
"NTSA, on its part, will continue to scale up coordination of road safety initiatives, including public education and awareness, to support behaviour and attitude change," he added.
