Kericho County Commissioner (CC) Mr. Gilbert Kitiyo has called on the Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA) and the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to work on modalities to rectify the Londiani-Muhoroni highway that has seen many lives lost due to accidents linked to the poor design of the highway.
While chairing the National Government-County Implementation Coordination and Management Committee NGO-CICM meeting in his boardroom on Tuesday, Kitiyo noted that the Londiani-Muhoroni highway has claimed many lives owing to related poor design, lack of road signage, and markings meant to guide motorists and road users.
He raised concerns that, despite numerous appeals to KeNHA, little had been done to make the highway safer for motorists.
The CC directed KeNHA officials from the Kisumu region who had attended the meeting to report to the committee during the next meeting on the measures they have taken to make the highway safer and accident-free.
“The Londiani-Muhoroni highway in the last few years has maimed and killed many Kenyans, and last year alone, quite a number of lives were lost as a result of accidents that keep on reoccurring. We cannot continue to watch and see people die on our roads while the authorities in charge remain helpless,” Kitiyo observed.
“You must rectify killer road sections, redesign, reconstruct, and put in place visible road signage even if they are made of wood or plastics and do proper road markings as a measure towards ensuring road safety at all times,” Kitiyo directed KeNHA.
In Kericho County alone, 143 Kenyans died on the roads, while 173 were seriously injured and another 132 were slightly injured in the year 2023. 49 Kenyans died, while 60 were seriously injured, and another 96 persons were slightly injured in 2024. The Regional Manager National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), Ms. Ascar David, informed the meeting that 4,324 and 4,748 died nationally in the years 2023 and 2024, respectively.
Ascar told the meeting that 57 per cent of the causes of road crashes in the country were a result of human behaviour factors, while 34 percent were due to road-related factors.
“Overspeeding, driving under the influence of alcohol, fatigue, not wearing a helmet, and not wearing safety belts are some of the human behaviours and road safety risk factors that contribute to the increase in road accidents in the country,” emphasized Ascar.
By Dominic Cheres