Opt to drive fuel-efficient vehicles

There are approximately 2.5 million vehicles on Kenya’s roads. If each of these cars consumes an average of Sh1,000 worth of fuel daily, then motorists spend an average of Sh2.5 billion daily and almost one trillion annually.

Considering that this year's budget for Parliament is approximately Sh26.5 billion, the money Kenyan motorists collectively spend every year can fund Parliament nearly 50 times over!

Most of the billions that Kenyan motorists spend to fuel their vehicles end up in the coffers of oil-exporting countries. In this regard, more vehicles on the road are mostly beneficial and highly lucrative for countries that sell us oil. For the 2.5 million Kenyans who own and drive their vehicles regularly, fuel for their cars is often one of the top-five expenditure items. Accordingly, each motorist ends up spending thousands on fuel in any given month.

This is one of the main reasons why I mostly drive the tiny Smart car. Smart is its name and it is indeed a smart car that consumes one litre for every 35 kilometres. This is approximately four times as cheap as the average cars on Africa’s roads. Even more interesting, I spend less on fuel than I would if I took a matatu. Apart from being extremely economical, the car is also intensely environmental because of the considerably less fuel consumption and less carbon emission.

If just a quarter of Kenya’s 2.5 million cars were highly fuel-efficient cars, billions would be saved. The saved amount would be injected back into the local economy instead of jettisoning into the well-oiled coffers of oil producing countries.

Private cars unquestionably have economic and environmental consequences. When President Kenyatta was Minister of Finance, he instituted the requirement for fuel-efficient vehicles for government officials. Several years later, this move has saved the country billions because recurring expenses for operation and maintenance are considerably lower.

This is the direction I suggest we follow. Purchase of a new vehicle is an important decision for anyone and shouldn’t be taken on the premise of misinformation or status pressure. It is unacceptable that Kenya’s per capita usage of fuel guzzlers is actually higher than the United Kingdom.

If you purchase a fuel-efficient vehicle, you can end up saving more than 75 per cent of what you would have otherwise spent on fuel. These cars cost anywhere from Sh700,000 to Sh3 million. They can be significantly cheaper if the government zero-rates import of cars that are below 1000cc. Similar tax exemption can be extended to electric cars so that Kenya can be a market leader in green cars.

Current motorists should ensure regular servicing for better fuel consumption. They should also ensure the mufflers in their exhaust pipes are intact since they reduce harmful emissions. Unfortunately, unscrupulous mechanics often remove mufflers from vehicles of unsuspecting motorists and sell them off. Indeed, cars that pollute less by extension cost less to operate and maintain.