Traffic Commandant Samuel Kimaru has declared it illegal for Toyota Probox cars and other private vehicles to be used for providing public transportation.
Speaking in Voi during a road safety awareness campaign, Kimaru directed all county traffic bosses to ensure that the illegal PSVs are removed from Kenyan roads immediately.
The commandant maintained that the vehicles were not authorised to operate as Public Service Vehicles (PSVs).
He stated that the vehicles have claimed many lives in the country, noting that the private vehicles operating as PSVs were notorious for overloading, speeding and reckless driving.
[caption caption="A Toyota Probox matatu "]
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“They drop and pick passengers at undesignated points without considering the lives of the passengers,” Kimaru stated.
“The police should carry out a countrywide crackdown on these Probox (cars) and other private cars immediately. The swoop should start today; I don’t want to see them on the roads,” he ordered.
Kimaru further added that the boda boda sector was slowly turning into a dangerous business with gangs of riders taking the law into their hands.
The traffic commandant warned: “Sometimes they don’t care that the rider was the cause of the accident. They torch the vehicle and even harass the driver of the vehicle. We will not tolerate this behaviour."
He added that cases of vehicles being torched by boda boda riders were on the rise in the country.
[caption caption="A Toyota Probox matatu "]
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“Arson is a very serious crime. We will deal with this trend the way we dealt with Mungiki and other outlawed gangs,” Kimaru stated.
