Motorists plying the Nairobi-Nakuru highway on Friday, July 7, were greeted by notable speed warning signs positioned strategically along the route leading to Western Kenya.
The inverted square warning sign, adorned in vibrant yellow and black colours prompted motorists along the accident prone highway to drive with caution.
Apart from the camera sign, the yellow sign had a cautionary message, "Speed enforcement section.", designed to capture the immediate attention of drivers urged to adhere to set speed limits.
Transport Cabinet Secretary, Kipchumba Murkomen, recently scaled efforts to curb road carnages after over 50 road users perished in the Londiani accident on Friday, July 30.
Other than erecting speed bumps, the CS also ordered all drivers to install dashboard cameras in their vehicles and promised to introduce a bill to introduce telematics that transmits real-time data to the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).
With the aforementioned measures set to cost motorists extra coins, the speed camera warning signs on highways come as a relief for drivers who accused police of waylaying them. The majority of drivers then pay instant fines while others pay their way out of trouble.
How Speed Cameras Work
The introduction of speed cameras on the roads was planned to kickstart in 2023 following the influx of accidents along the busy highway.
According to Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, who spoke after the Pwani University accident on April 1, the speed cameras will be used to enforce instant fines for motorists exceeding the limit set in various sections.
The former Elgeyo Markawet Senator added that the project would be piloted along the Mombasa - Nairobi - Nakuru - Kisumu Highway.
“With the cameras, we will be able to do instant enforcement as it will capture rogue drivers who are overspeeding and overlapping,” he stated.
Previously, traffic police have relied on speed guns, raising questions about inefficiency and corruption.
What the Law Says
The Traffic Act okays the use of speed guns and cameras. Section 43 of the Act provides for the prosecution to rely on data from speed guns and cameras to prove that one contravened a set limit.
"A person charged with the offence of driving a motor vehicle of any class or description on a road at a speed greater than the maximum speed allowed shall not be liable to be convicted solely on the evidence of one witness to the effect that in the opinion of the witness the person charged was driving the vehicle at such greater speed," reads the Act in part.
Notably, data recorded from the speed gadgets have previously been entered as evidence in court cases.
For instance, in a 2014 traffic case which involved a lawyer accused of exceeding the speed limit, the High Court in Naivasha ruled that the police could not rely on their personal opinion in determining the speed limit.
In the ruling delivered by Justice Christine Meoli, the court resolved that the police in the case relied on data from a speed gun to determine that the accused surpassed the speed limit of 80 kilometres per hour.
According to data from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) 2,318 Kenyans lost their lives in accidents between January 1 to July 5, 2023. Speeding and careless driving were among the leading causes of the accidents.
