The Kenya National Highways Authority’s (KeNHA) Axle Load Enforcement Unit has impounded several sand trucks that were carrying more than their approved load.
According to Jackson Kimuyu, the assistant operations manager at Danka Africa Kenya Limited, the contracted weighbridge operator, the trucks were apprehended during a sting operation carried out by the team in Kajiado.
Kimuyu stated that sand trucks and transporters of loose construction cargo are responsible for widespread destruction of road infrastructure, and that they have come up with ways to deal with them in accordance with the Axle Load Control and Traffic Act.
“We are working very closely with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Kajiado county government and other road agencies to ensure total compliance and safe road assets,” Kimuyu said.
He also stated that goons who attempted to destroy vehicles belonging to Axle Load officials had been arrested and processed.
Kimuyu stated that the hardest hit areas are the Athi River and Gilgil clusters, where a compliance audit was conducted to ensure full compliance.
Kimuyu also outlined a growing list of methods used by rogue transporters to outwit patrol teams from KeNHA’s Axle Load Enforcement Highway Units (ALEHU).
One of the most common tactics involves paying boda boda riders to act as spotters.
Stationed along major highways and feeder roads, these motorcycle taxi operators alert truckers to the presence of enforcement vehicles, enabling them to divert onto alternative routes before being intercepted.
In addition to the boda boda network, private motorists, including drivers working for ride-hailing apps, have been recruited to take photographs of KeNHA patrol units.
These images are circulated through closed social media groups used by truck drivers, allowing them to plan evasive maneuvers well in advance.
Truckers themselves also contribute to the intelligence chain. Those who encounter weighbridge staff often take photographs of enforcement vehicles and officers, posting them in group chats along with details of possible “panya routes”, small, unofficial feeder roads or estate roads that bypass weighbridges.
The overuse of such feeder roads has led to significant deterioration, with many now riddled with potholes and rendered unsafe for smaller vehicles.
In some cases, truck operators have gone further by tampering with their number plates to trick virtual sensor systems, making it harder for automated weigh-in-motion technology to identify them.
The situation has at times escalated into violence. In Athi River, a KeNHA team was attacked by a mob of sand loaders who pelted their vehicles with rocks.
Police were forced to intervene to evacuate the enforcement officers to safety. Such confrontations have raised concerns about the personal security of road safety personnel.
