The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) is contemplating a review of speed limits on various roads as part of efforts to improve road safety.
In its draft strategic plan for 2023-2027, NTSA observed that reducing speed limits on roads with significant pedestrian activity would mitigate the escalating accident rates.
Currently, speed limits on roads range from 50 kilometres per hour to 80 kilometres per hour, depending on the surrounding institutions and activities.
However, on certain highways, speed limits slightly exceed the 100 km/hr threshold.
NTSA also proposes the use of traffic calming as an avenue to address issues of speeding. Some of the traffic-claiming strategies that are adopted internationally include the narrowing of road speed tables and mini-roundabouts.
On the other hand, NTSA also proposed the erection of barriers on sections of roads where there have been accidents.
"A new suite of safety design manuals will be developed for Kenya that are aligned with the safe system approach.
"That is, the design manuals will assume that user error will occur, and will focus on the provision of physical safety protection for users, such as median and roadside barriers on high-speed roads to tackle head-on and run-off-road crashes," read the strategic document in part.
Additionally, NTSA noted that it would push to have road designs for the country incorporate roundabouts and speed control platforms to tackle side-on crashes at intersections.
"Once the suite of manuals addresses these three primary crash issues, further safety design manuals can be developed to support other safety design manuals addressing matters such as signs and markings, safety at road works, and promoting good maintenance practices.
"Consideration will also be given under this action to requirements for implementing safe road design and management standards on the Northern Corridor, and removing regulatory barriers to private sector investment in Roadside Stations on the Corridor so long as investment is consistent with design principles for eliminating fatal and serious injury," NTSA added.
Road accidents have been of concern to Kenyans in recent days. Over, 1,000 Kenyans have lost their lives in road carnages since the beginning of the year.
Notably, the majority of those who are affected are pedestrians. Between January 1, 2024, to April 3, 2024, 445 pedestrians have died.
