Let State, PSV operators sit and agree on rules

Kenya: Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary, Engineer Michael Kamau, faces prosecution for ignoring a court ruling negating the drastic transport rules his ministry effected and which are being contested by stakeholders.

Government’s role in business is to be an enabler and to protect the public interest.

There is empirical evidence showing that in the period following the ban on night travel by public service vehicles (PSVs) vehicles, fatal road accidents have reduced drastically. This is not to say that these vehicles were solely responsible for the road carnage. A combination of factors that include bad roads, defective vehicles, driver apathy, complicity by passengers eager to travel by any means and lax enforcement of rules by traffic police is to blame for the crisis in the transport sector.

Banning night travel may have partially achieved its goals, but the Government should have gone further to engage stakeholders in formulating mutually agreed policies that ensure safety while cutting down on road accidents and ensuring that investors get a return on their investment.

The High Court’s quashing of the ban on night travel and the subsequent court order calling for the suspension of Rule 11 of the Traffic Act must be honoured. That ban has disrupted the social and economic lives of citizens travelling upcountry over weekends to be with family members.

The manner in which the ban was enforced apparently contravened the law, which stipulates that Parliament’s approval was required prior to enforcement. That was not done.

The welfare of travellers, safety and road discipline must form the core of any discussions between the Government and stakeholders who should not just have their sights on profit maximisation while maintaining the status quo where chaos reigns supreme on the highway.   They must be ready to play by the new rules that avert death and carnage on the roads.