649 Kenyans killed in road accidents since January 1 - NTSA

The number of Kenyans losing their lives in road accidents continues to rise according to the latest statistics from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).

On Wednesday, the authority said 26 more Kenyans have perished on the roads between January and February 20 this year, making the number of fatalities more than those that perished during the same time last year.

According to NTSA, 649 Kenyans died on the roads this year compared to 623 who perished last year.

Pedestrians suffered the most casualties this year with 252 dying on the roads compared to 190 last year.

Fewer motorcyclists have perished on the roads this year (158) compared to (177) same time, last year.

Additionally, more passengers have succumbed this year (125) compared to 114 last year, fewer pedal cyclists have died this year (10) compared to 12 last year, pillion passenger deaths tallied (61) compared to 71 last year.

According to the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), counties situated along the Northern Corridor stretching from Mombasa to Malaba account for 40 per cent of the 4,000 lives lost on Kenyan roads every year.

Four of these counties; Nairobi, Kiambu, Nakuru, and Machakos account for 36 per cent of the 40 per cent making the sections of the corridor joining them the most dangerous stretches in the country.

Dangerous roads

These include; the Thika Superhighway, Nairobi-Mombasa Highway, Nairobi-Nakuru Highway, Nakuru-Eldoret Highway, Eastern Bypass, Waiyaki Way, and Outering Road.

Last year, the authority launched a National Road Safety Action Plan seeking to have annual road carnage reduced by half.

The five-year plan running between 2023 and 2027 will focus on the road network in urban areas and other corridors that were picked as having had the highest number of accidents in 2022.

More safety concentration is accorded to these stretches that account for 80 per cent of the targeted data.

Additionally, a Nationwide Emergency Response system that links road crash victims to Medicare is among the proposals contained in the new National Road Safety Action Plan.

The system is aimed at curbing deaths resulting from poor handling of patients by first responders by dialling a contact to alert emergency services of a road crash.

A draft of the plan notes that while the country has an extensive network of health facilities with the major ones equipped with emergency units dedicated to crash victims, a gap occasioned by poor handling of crash victims continues to cause deaths that could have been avoided through proper emergency care accorded at the scene of the accident.

"Emergency services are not well developed and crash victims are often transported to hospital by members of the public, rather than trained paramedics and medical professionals. There is also limited knowledge of first aid among the general public who are often the first responders in case of a crash. The injury severity and mortality rates are increased by poor treatment at the scene of the crash and as victims are transported from a crash scene to the hospital," the document states.

To achieve this, an investment in good-quality emergency health services along high-risk corridors and areas prone to traffic accidents will be prioritized in a multi-agency approach involving county governments, the Ministry of Health, Transport, Interior, and all stakeholders.