Road Accidents Kill 30 in a Span of One Week

At least 30 people have lost their lives in less than one week following road accidents in various parts of the country, further raising questions over the safety of Kenyan roads.

The latest accident happened on Wednesday of 27^th March along the busy Nairobi-Garissa highway, at a place called Matuu. 15 people have already been confirmed dead.

Reports indicate that the bus was heading to Nairobi when it ran into a stationary lorry parked by the roadside at Matuu, Machakos County.

Scores others were seriously injured and rushed to various hospitals within Machakos County. Many people lost lives because assistance took long to arrive.

Within the week, six people lost their lives in another grisly road accident that happened near Masimba market, Kajiado County along the busy Nairobi-Mombasa Highway. The accident involved a matatu and a lorry.

On 22^nd of March, all the 12 passengers who were in a 2NK Nissan matatu lost their lives at Kikopey along the Nairobi – Nakuru highway. The matatu was hit by a lorry which was said to have developed mechanical problems, losing control and ramming into the matatu, killing all the passengers on board.

Lives Lost Since January 2019

Stats given by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) indicate that at least 683 people have lost their lives on Kenyan roads between January and March of this year, 2019.

In the NTSA stats, pedestrians remain the most vulnerable group of road users with 235 having died in the three-month period.  NTSA says the number of fatalities as a result of motorcycles went down from 137 to 128. However, these are the cases that are reported and documented by NTSA.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that between 3,000 and 15,000 Kenyans lose their lives in road traffic crashes every year. The majority of these people are vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, motorcycles, and cyclists.

Time We Reduced Senseless Deaths

Almost all the lives lost on Kenyan roads are what we can call senseless deaths caused by carelessness. In the first two accidents this week, lorries were involved. There so many unroadworthy lorries on Kenyan roads that have been causing road accidents. It is time NTSA rained on these death traps.

Most lives have been lost due to delay in the arrival of medical assistance. Kenya has over 100 known black spots that have ended up killing people severally. Why can’t the government station ambulances along such routes or at such black spots to help save lives in case of an accident?

The government is known to have perfected the art of kneejerk reactions on matters transport. The reintroduction of the famous Michuki Rules by CS Fred Matiang’i died as soon as they were reintroduced.