Nairobi — Kenya recorded 1,968 deaths as of June compared to 1,800 lives during a similar period in 2021, the National Transport and Safety Authority has said.
This number translates to a 9.3 per cent increase which is replicated under other categories of serious and slight injuries.
According to NTSA, fatalities reported in 2022 included 622 pedestrians, 545 motorcyclists, 322 passengers, and 192 pillion passengers.
A total of 181 drivers and 29 pedal-cyclists also lost their lives in the six months to June.
In 2020, NTSA recorded 2,689 deaths between January and September as a result of road accidents.
"The National Police Service and the National Transport and Safety Authority have noted with concern an alarming increase in road traffic crashes incidences on our roads. The two agencies, viz NPS and NTSA further regret all the fatalities and injuries as a result of these unfortunate crashes," Police Spokesperson Bruno Shioso said in a statement.
His statement comes a few days after an accident between a Nairobi-bound bus and a saloon vehicle which occurred along Thika Mwingi Road leaving seven passengers dead and injured five.
Shioso expressed concern over what he termed the spike in crashes calling for urgent redress from all the stakeholders.
"It is regrettable that most crashes are a result of human-related factors. Motorists and other road users are therefore reminded to remain vigilant, cautious, and responsible whilst in charge of a motor vehicle, or whenever using a public road as pedestrians," he said.
He called on motorists and road users to exercise caution while using roads to mitigate the rising cases of accidents.
Shioso said that the Inspector-General of Police Hillary Mutyambai and the NTSA Director-General had directed a joint multi-Agency crackdown to weed out all noncompliant motor vehicles and motorists, who are violating the Traffic Act and related laws.
"The directive takes immediate effect," Shioso said.
The Police Spokesperson urged motorists and other road users to cooperate with the law enforcement agencies at the national and county levels towards achieving the objectives of this initiative.
He called on the non-compliant vehicles to keep off public roads to avoid any inconvenience to passengers.
