Road accidents spike as retest exercise of drivers hang in balance

Deputy Director and Head of Safety ad Compliance at NTSA Wilson Tuikong. [Denish Ochieng, Standard] The spike in accidents has once again laid bare the dangers travellers are exposed to on Kenyan roads. Within a span of four days, some 80 people lost their lives in separate crashes across the country in a familiar trend that has claimed about 2, 933 lives since January this year as authorities grapple in search of a lasting solution to the road carnage. Human error has been identified as the main contributor to accidents with reckless driving, speeding, and driving under the influence cited as main factors intertwined with poor road conditions, insufficient enforcement and corruption. However, in an attempt to address the human error aspact, National Transport Safety Authority (NTSA) came up a short-term measure that sought to address driver competence and suitability on roads. In June 2023, the authority rolled-out a re-test exercise for drivers of public service and heavy commercial vehicles. No renewal of licence would be done without satisfactorily passing the re-test conducted NTSA inspection centres in Nairobi, Thika, Machakos, Nakuru, Kericho, Mombasa, Eldoret, Kisumu, Kakamega, Meru, Embu, Nyeri, Kisii and Garissa. But a month into the exercise, the mandatory re-testing was suspended following stiff opposition from stakeholders with drivers claiming that the Sh1,050 booking fee was exorbitant. Then Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the suspension was to pave way for formation of a multi-agency team that was to look into concerns raised by stakeholders in the chaotic transport sector. The team was given 14 days to do the job and prepare a report. "The exercise will take 14 days and the report with recommendations submitted for further decision-making. Taking note of the above, I hereby halt the retesting of drivers until September 1, 2023 to give the multi-agency committee time to address the rising concerns," Murkomen said. Free training, introduction of a standard speed limit and redesigning of roads were some of the demands of the stakeholders before resumption of re-testing. For the few weeks drivers were subjected to re-test, a sizeable number failed, confirming the obvious that most of them are not competent enough. "This shows that the pass rate is 18 per cent, which we mainly attribute to the prolonged lack of a uniform driving curriculum across the country and the previously easily accessible licenses, which created room for unqualified drivers to acquire them," explained Wilson Tuikong while justifying why the retesting was necessary. Tuikong is NTSA's Deputy Director and Head of Safety Compliance, Driver Training and Testing. When The Standard sought his views regarding the status of the retest policy, Tuikong without going into details said no further progress has been made after petitioners went to court to stop implementation. "We were unable to resume the retest after some petitioners went to court, I will have to find out the progress of the court case from our legal team," said Tuikong. The written exam tests involved testing drivers' basic knowledge on road safety, highway code, road signs and model town board with questions revolving around tools to carry during a journey, entry age to qualify as a driver, maximum speed limit within a town and spots where pedestrians are supposed to cross. The test also focused on when a driver is supposed to overtake, traffic lights, impact of foggy weather, distance to be kept between vehicles on a highway, requisite interior components of a vehicle and vehicles that have right of way among others. On practical application the drivers were examined on general driving and drivers' attitude with focus on lane discipline or use, overtaking; traffic lights, roundabouts and barriers; adjustment to different road conditions; observance and obedience of road signs and signals; road courtesy; hazard procedure; alertness and anticipation; and adherence to distance. But the retest, which NTSA hoped would instill discipline among drivers of public service and heavy commercial vehicles significantly reducing the number of accidents, seem to have run into legal hurdles. The re-test is in line with Section 105A (1) of the Traffic Act that provides that a driver of a public service vehicle (PSV) shall, after every three years from the data issued with a driving license pursuant to Section 30, or renewal of such license, undergo a physical fitness, including an eye and hearing test by a qualified medical practitioner. It has never been a walk in the park as NTSA tries to bring sanity on the roads. In 2018, NTSA came up with rules and a curriculum aimed at standardising driver training, which were however rejected by Parliament. The authority restarted the process again the following year, and on March 10, 2020, the Traffic (Driving Schools, Driving Instructors and Driving Licences) rules were gazetted, paving way for the re-test exercise that has stalled, leaving NTSA almost helpless as more lives continue to be lost. According to Peter Murima, chairman, Motorists Association of Kenya, the retest was a noble idea whose implementation was being done by the wrong people. Accusing NTSA of abetting corruption, Murima thinks an independent body should have been mandated to carry out the retesting exercise. "NTSA presides over a licensing process that is a total sham right from the driving schools and testing centres where money is bribed to acquire a license. So it is foolhardy to expect the authority to clean its own mess," said Murima. Absolving drivers from blame, the official instead pointed an accusing finger on systematic failure and lack of political goodwill. Citing Kisumu accident where 26 mourners died at the Coptic Mamboleo roundabout along the Kisumu-Kakamega Road, Murima maintained the government is squarely to blame for the poor state of roads and relaxed enforcement. "Sanity can return on the roads if leadership is serious; and we witness this happen during the Muchuki Rules. I can tell without fear of contradiction that Kenyan drivers are the best in the world by the sheer fact that they are able to navigate through poorly designed roads, unmarked roads and pathetic roads," said Murima. When he visited the accident scene at the Coptic Mamboleo roundabout, Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang' Nyong'o has called on Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) to redesign the blackspot to prevent similar incidents. Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir says a team from various agencies is conducting safety audits on road segments to identify safety deficiencies. "The team is expected to complete the exercise within seven the next seven days and submit technical recommendations for implementation to avert unnecessary loss of lives," disclosed Chirchir. The ministry, he promised, will continue working withal stakeholders to implement both long and medium-term measures provided in the National Road Safety Action Plan 2024-2028. "NTSA on its part will continue to scale up coordination of road safety initiatives including public education and awareness to support behaviour and attitude change," added Chirchir. The Action Plan outlines eight priority actions the government will undertake to implement through a multi-agency and multi-sectoral framework. The prirotised themes are improve funding of lead agency; improve the lead agency management of horizontal and vertical coordination processes; improve the risk targeting of road safety interventions; improve the safe classification, design, and use of the road network. Subject to availability of funds, other areas will focus on developing and implementing regulations that align vehicle safety and environmental standards with global best practice; improve the enforcement of unsafe road user; improve the provision of post-crash services across the full spectrum of emergency response; and improve the road safety data collection and analysis systems.

Road accidents spike as retest exercise of drivers hang in balance

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