President William Ruto has directed the Ministry of Transport and the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to install speed cameras across major towns.
Speaking on Monday, March 2, at State House Nairobi, President Ruto said the speed cameras should be installed within a month.
The President stated that the speed cameras should be integrated with instant fines.
“When you leave here, go do what you have to do with the support of the Ministry of Transport. Rolling out the cameras is not rocket science since we have had cameras before on the roads, so let us roll out the cameras in six major towns in Kenya in the next one month.
“And those cameras should be connected to the whole framework of instant fines,” President Ruto ordered.
The Head of State noted that the rollout of the speed cameras and instant fines will make it easy for the government to deal with traffic offenders.
“This will make it easy for us to do several things. We will not be arguing with offenders; the cameras will provide full proof that they are in breach,” said Ruto.
He also noted that the move would prevent some cases from proceeding to court since the fines are predetermined, and added that the state would be able to generate revenue directly from the penalties.
“We do not have to go and bother the chief justice in court; the fines will be predetermined. When you commit an offence, you will receive a fine on your phone instantly. The issue of us not having money will also end because we will be collecting money instantly,” Ruto added.
This comes after NTSA announced it is planning to install over 1,000 traffic cameras across Kenyan highways.
In a notice on February 24, the authority announced it will implement the plan under a public-private-partnership (PPP) with KCB Bank and Pesa Print Limited.
According to NTSA, the cameras will be linked to a National Command and Control Centre, and the traffic violations will be linked to the offender driver’s profile.
Offenders will receive instant notifications from NTSA through SMS.
“The PPP will incorporate the deployment, implementation, and operationalisation of the instant fine infrastructure, including mobile driving licence wallet, driver merit and demerit point system, driver history, driver life cycle management and general information,” the Safety Authority explained.
