The increasing incidents of death and destruction on Kenya's highways point to a sad, demoralising fact: President Kibaki has invested billions of our tax-monies in building and re-building roads, but almost nothing in educating and re-educating drivers on the proper use of those roads. The Executive is in charge of rad safety, but it is in the private sector that you will find the greatest investment in public transport. However, the investment made by the private sector in public transport is often placed in grave jeopardy by operatives of the black market, the Mungikis and other types of organised and un-organised criminal gangs. As a result, not only are the declared costs of operation in the transport sector high, they are pushed to draconian heights by the illegal taxes levied upon the sector by crime.
The Executive has invested in infrastructure that will be of immense benefit to this country down the road, but this investment is also becoming a drain on other parts of this nation's fabric. With the increasing deaths and injuries suffered on our highways, the Executive may begin to divert scarce resources from other parts of its administration to cover the costs of not only protecting but treating those who use our highways. Emergency response services are now primed to respond to an increasing number of road traffic accidents, at the expense of other kinds of emergency response. But it is the blase response of Kenyan road users that is staggering: not one person has admitted that our training and re-training regimen is insufficient to prepare drivers for the open road and not one person will admit that he is a poor road user, believing instead that he is Kenya's answer to Nigel Mansell or Lewis Hamilton.
The number and variety of used and second-hand vehicles on Kenya's roads is rising by the day. Even at this time when the cost of importing these vehicles has gone up by around 15%, the number keeps rising. these vehicles offer access and mobility to thousands upon thousand who cannot rely on an inefficient public transport system, where profit overrides everything else, including safety and comfort. many of the these imported vehicles are driven by inexperienced drivers who do not appreciate that the machines in their control can be turned into instruments of death if the circumstances prevailing during their operation are not optimum. They do not appreciate the crucial need to constantly have these vehicles serviced or repaired when parts break down. More often than not, even new-looking cars may have failing breaks, failing lights, failing gear-boxes or improperly serviced or pressurised tyres. Under normal conditions, these vehicles appear sound and safe; under even slightly abnormal conditions, these cars turns into death-traps, placing lives and property at grave risk.
We face diverse challenges in bringing down the high human cost of using our brand-new roads. It is imperative that all the regulatory and enforcement agencies involved in managing road safety in Kenya renew the zeal they demonstrated during the terrifying reign of John Michuki at Transcom House in the early 2000s. Kenyans must also admit to themselves that it takes more than 10 hours of class and theory to make a safe driver. Indeed, many of those who see themselves as Kenya's next rally and formula one stars would be best advised to enter re-training programmes to test whether they remember the basic rules of the road, such as those contained in the Highway Code. Finally, the Executive must embark and sustain a massive public education campaign on the duties, responsibilities and rights of all road users, including drivers, passengers, pedestrians, motorcyclists and cyclists of all stripes. A concerted effort among all the key stakeholders and the Executive is the only way that we can bring down and perhaps eliminate, avoidable death and injury on our roads.
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