What we must do to end road accidents
Members of the public at the scene of an accident in which a matatu plunged into Sondu River along the Ahero-Kisii road on December 8, 2020, killing two people.
What you need to know:
- Bribe-loving traffic officers must be brought to heel if we really want to save lives.
- Vehicles that aren’t roadworthy and incompetent drivers should be taken off our highways.
Road accidents have become rampant, especially after the festive season when people travel back to their places of residence and work.
It is also the period that students travel back to schools. I spend a lot of time watching and listening to the news and it is quite disheartening to see stories on road accidents.
Time has come for us to put an end to carnage on the roads. It is heart-rending to be confronted everyday by pictures of mangled vehicles and horrifying images of corpses lying on the road and bandaged survivors in hospitals. Bribe-loving traffic officers must be brought to heel if we really want to save lives.
Vehicles that aren’t roadworthy and incompetent drivers should be taken off our highways.
Today, if you travel on, for instance, Thika or Mombasa roads, you will be shocked by people’s behaviour. Matatus overload and speed, putting lives in jeopardy.
What worries me the most is the fact that these barbaric practices happen at the watchful eyes of traffic police officers who, instead of ensuring safety among road-users, take bribes.
Remedy road carnage
There is also the incessant hooting by matatus competing for passengers, causing noise pollution. According to statistics from the roadworthy the National Transport Safety Authority , road accidents have led to an alarmingly high increase in deaths every year.
For instance, there were 3,063 deaths due to road accidents in 2020. This number rose to 4,012 death tolls in 2021.
Traffic police officers and other relevant authorities should take urgent measures to rein in road accidents.
The responsibility to remedy road carnage is also upon ordinary citizens.
Road users must obey traffic lights. Pedestrians should also avoid wearing earphones while crossing the road.
Boda boda operators should cease playing loud music and, last but not least, drivers should know when to keep left or right, and maintain their lane.
Ken Austine, 20, studies communication, media, and journalism at Rongo University.
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