Nairobi — The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) will license 70 privately operated vehicle inspection centres to improve road safety and environmental standards through automated vehicle testing and emissions monitoring.

The rollout will include 47 centres across the country's 47 counties, 10 along major transport corridors, and 13 in high-volume areas.

Kenya currently has only 17 public vehicle inspection centres, a shortage that has affected service delivery and prompted the opening of the sector to private investors.

Speaking on NTV's Fixing the Nation programme, NTSA Director General Nashon Kondiwa said the new facilities will replace manual inspection methods with modern technology to improve the efficiency and accuracy of vehicle inspections.

He added that NTSA also plans to establish public vehicle inspection centres in every county to improve access to inspection services.

Kondiwa further announced that the vehicle inspection fee has been increased from Sh1,000 to Sh2,000, citing inflation and the rising cost of providing the service.