Drunk drivers not off the hook yet despite Alcoblow ban

National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) Director General Francis Meja (R) flanked by the board chairman Joseph Waweru address the press during a two day workshop for stakeholders in Lake Naivasha country club in Naivasha. Meja said that they had not received any court order barring them from using the infamous alcoblow. PHOTO:Antony Gitonga

Drunk drivers not off the hook yet despite Alcoblow ban

The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has defended its decision to continue using Alcoblow despite a ruling by the High Court barring it from doing so.

The authority says it is yet to receive a court order and has vowed to continue cracking down on drunk drivers. They will however use a different section of the law to charge those caught driving under the influence of alcohol.

According to NTSA Director General Francis Meja, they will instead stop using the breathalyser rules to charging errant drivers.

Following the court ruling, Mr Meja said they would now use Section 44(1) of the Traffic Act, which outlaws anyone from driving a vehicle without being in full control.

"We have not received any court order stopping us from the using Alcoblow and the operation will continue apart from the charges, which will be substituted," he said.

He defended the use of the breathalyser, saying drunk driving contributes to many accidents across the country.

Meja was addressing journalists during a two-day workshop for County Transport and Safety committees at Lake Naivasha Country Club.

He revealed that assorted measures had seen the number of fatal accidents go down this year compared to last year.

According to the statistics, by April 8, a total of 318 pedestrians had died compared to 341 last year. In the same period, 182 passengers, 147 motorcyclists and 83 drivers have also died.

The authority is working with county governments to improve road safety and reduce the number of accidents further.