The government has prohibited school transportation between 10 pm and 5 am.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said this is in accordance with Traffic Amendment Act, 2017, effective immediately.
“In the last couple of weeks, our country has witnessed the unfortunate loss of innocent lives including those of school children following tragic road traffic crashes in various parts of the country,” Murkomen said.
The CS said the ministry is working collaboratively with other government agencies and stakeholders in the transport sector to put in place stringent measures that will enhance road safety.
“On the issue of transportation for school children, it is prudent to enhance safety especially now that the schools are closing and our children are traveling home.”
Murkomen said that all school children must be allocated seats with functional seatbelts put on at all times.
Further, he directed that school vans, buses, and matatus that are roadworthy be removed from the roads with immediate effect.
According to the fresh directives, all the 57 licensed speed limiter vendors are required to install approved gadgets that will limit speed, record data after every five seconds, transmit data to both the NTSA and vendor servers and report violations in real time.
Murkomen now wants all infrastructure around schools to be audited and declared school zones with necessary road
furniture for the safety of the institutions within six months.
“I have further instructed the road agencies to ensure cameras have been installed at all blackspots,” the CS said adding that the first phase will be completed within four months.
In implementing Section 105 (1) of the Traffic Act that calls for physical fitness tests including eyes and ears after every three years of issuance or renewal of a driving license, the Ministry of Roads and Transport have subjected to a mandatory driver retest upon expiry of the license starting June 1, 2023.
The CS said they will work closely with the Ministry of Interior and National Coordination and other related ministries and state agencies to ensure the directives are adhered to.
“I have also instructed NTSA to intensify the Usalama Barabarani campaign and education awareness programs across the country in a bid to change the attitude and behavior of all road users.”
