An average of 12 Kenyans lose their lives daily on the roads across the country this year as accidents’ fatalities continue to record a worrying exponential rise.
This is despite increasing calls to road users; both motorists and pedestrians, to exercise caution and obey traffic rules.
Statistics from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) show that 156 more Kenyans have died on the road between January and November this year compared to the same period last year.
The data shows that last year recorded fatalities tallied to 3,947; a decrease from this year’s 4,103.
This amounts to an average of 373 deaths per month and 12 deaths daily with a majority occurring during the weekends.
Pedestrians continue to account for the largest number of these deaths in the two consecutive years as cyclists account for the least fatalities within the same period.
This year, pedestrians lost in accidents were 1,486 followed by drivers at 378, passengers at 721, pillion passengers at 377 and pedal cyclists at 56.
Last year’s deaths ranked as follows; pedestrians at 1,346 followed by drivers at 395, passengers at 653, pillion passengers at 388 and pedal cyclists at 76.
Victims that suffered serious injuries declined from 8,749 last year to 8,372 this year while those that sustained slight injuries increased from 5,093 last year to 6,000 this year.
In one of the latest accidents, a hit and run motorist succumbed along Jogoo road after losing control of his vehicle and hitting an electric pole that rolled his vehicle into a ditch while speeding away from the accident scene on Sunday.
A police report filed at Makongeni Police Station said the driver sustained serious injuries and died on the spot near Mogas petrol station, his victim a Kenya Prisons officer was rushed to hospital with injuries on his head.
On the same day, a 12-year-old boy succumbed as four others all belonging to African Divine church sustained serious injuries after they were hit by a motorist who had lost control of his vehicle and swerved towards them as they marched in procession towards Yaya Centre.
In Shauri Moyo, a passenger succumbed to serious head injuries after alighting from a moving vehicle along Muinami road opposite Care Hospital on Sunday.
Police said Nicholas Kyalo Mbinda (37) slid and fell on the tarmac sustaining the injuries that claimed his life on the spot.
Two weeks ago, the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) lost three of its staff members; Jeremiah Biwott, Brian Kayeli Sasia and Titus Kioko Munyao in a road crash along the Eldoret-Kitale highway. The three were part of six persons that succumbed in the early morning head on collision involving their official vehicle, a tractor and a Public Service Vehicle near Sosiani bridge.
NTSA Board Chairperson Ms Agnes Odhiambo says the rise in accident numbers is preventable if only Kenyans adopt a change in behavior and stop speeding, reckless driving, dangerous overtaking, drunk driving, drunk walking, use seatbelts, helmets and designated pedestrian walkways.
" We must all be alive to the fact that we have a collective responsibility in keeping our roads safe. We must remember road crashes do not just happen, they are caused. As we approach the festive season, I urge all road users to prioritise their safety and that of the other road users,” she said during the commemoration of road crash victims last month.
