Most major roads in Mombasa are unsafe, with many accidents being recorded on them, according to a new report, even as the number of pedestrian fatalities increased.

Mombasa-Nairobi Road, Mombasa-Malindi Road, Links Road, Likoni-Ukunda Road, and Changamwe Ward along Magongo Road are notorious, recording most of the accidents.

It cites police records from 2019 to 2022, shows most accidents occur during the weekends due to drunk driving or driving over speed limits.

In a recent report launched by Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS), pedestrians topped the list of victims of road crashes, at 46.5 per cent.

For Ruth Machocho, a former model and road crash survivor, a speeding truck along the Malindi Mombasa highway changed her life for the worse after it hit her.

Machocho was knocked down by a speeding truck as she was about to board a boda boda home from a business meeting in Nyali, an incident that has left her psychologically and emotionally traumatised.

The 32-year-old mother of two said she has been forced to adjust to a life to using crutches and struggling to get a prosthetic leg, which is expensive. "Speeding can bring about situations that cannot be fixed. I have two children and one is at university and I am struggling to pay fees. So is psychological and emotional torture," said Machocho.

Mombasa Road Injury Surveillance Coordinator, Selina Kwamini said 93 per cent of deaths over the same period were pedestrians, motorcyclists, tricyclists, and pedal cyclists, with pedestrians alone accounting for about half of the reported fatalities.

"High-risk fatal crash locations are Mombasa-Nairobi Road, Mombasa-Malindi Road/Links Road, Likoni-Ukunda Road, and Changamwe Ward along Magongo Road," said Kwamini.

She said that males accounted for 82 per cent of the reported deaths from 2019 to 2022.

Risk factors

The report also highlights behavioural risk factors for road injury in Mombasa with a 27 per cent prevalence of speeding with SUVs topping the list of vehicles observed speeding over the posted limit.

Kamini said that correct helmet use was at 26 per cent for riders and 2 per cent for passengers.

"The highest number of deaths in 2022 occurred among those aged 20 to 29 years old. Deaths were frequently reported following crashes which occurred between 2 pm and 4 pm in 2022, while 45 per cent of deaths occurred from crashes on weekends (Fridays to Sundays) in 2022," read the report presented by Kwamini.

Regional Technical Advisor for Africa on Road Injury Surveillance at Vital Strategies (coordinating partner for BIGRS), Dr Raphael Awuah, said there is a need to prioritize the safety of pedestrians, two- and three-wheelers, and cyclists in Mombasa.

"Findings on the most vulnerable groups, risk periods, and high-risk locations should inform police enforcement, behaviour change communication, and engineering interventions to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries in the county," said Awuah.

BIGRS Initiative Coordinator in Mombasa, Vipul Patel, said: "The burden of road traffic crashes poses a serious health, social, and economic problem in Mombasa - especially since a majority of those who die are young and economically active."

National Roads Safety Authority (NTSA) Coast Regional Director Manager Caroline Sankan said human error is a major factor in road accidents.

"The reality is that fatality numbers are higher. Our road transport system has over the years not been considerate of the vulnerable. However, we are seeing changes in the new road construction. We are going to have road safety included from the very beginning," said Sankan.