Murkomen Halts Mandatory Driver Retesting
Tuesday, July 11th, Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen suspended the required retesting of Public Service Vehicles (PSV) until September 1, 2023.
The CS noted in a statement that the parties involved had consented to the formation of a multi-agency committee tasked with examining the grievances raised by PSV drivers and conductors.
They also agreed that the identities of all the industry’s representatives would be submitted by August 1, 2023.
“To this end, the Ministry and the stakeholders have agreed to form a multi-agency committee that will, among other things, review the complaints raised by the drivers and conductors. A copy of this agreement has been submitted to my office today, 11 July 2023, at 3 p.m.
“We have also stipulated that they must submit the names of the officials representing ALL industry participants by August 1, 2023.” The exercise will take fourteen days, and a report with recommendations will be submitted for further decision-making,” according to a portion of the statement.
Murkomen added, “Taking note of the foregoing, I hereby suspend the retesting of drivers until September 1, 2023, to allow the multi-agency committee time to address the growing concerns.”
The CS noted that his Ministry enacted the retesting of drivers to reduce the consistently increasing number of road traffic fatalities in the country from 2017 to 2022.
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According to the data, there were estimated to be 2,919 fatalities in 2017, compared to 4,690 in 2022. Since January of 2023, 2,318 fatalities have been recorded.
Murkomen noted that, in response to the alarming statistics, his ministry implemented several measures in the Traffic Act to combat the vice, including mandatory retesting.
“The re-test was reserved exclusively for drivers of commercial and public service vehicles and is a prerequisite for the renewal of driver’s licenses with the following class endorsements: B3, D1, D2, D3, C, C1, CE, and CD,” the statement stated in part.
Driver Retesting Methodology
Since the National Transport and Safety Administration (NTSA) began retesting drivers, 1,847 PSV drivers have passed the exam with an average passing rate of 31%.
This primarily involved retesting drivers of public service vehicles, including school bus drivers. In Nairobi, 297 drivers passed the exam, while 581 failed to satisfy the minimum standard.
In Mombasa County, 80 drivers passed the road test, while 70 did not. 50 PSV drivers in Thika completed the process effectively, while 179 failed.
The announcement was made hours before the nationwide strike that was proclaimed by PSVs, long-distance transport services, and taxi drivers.
The stakeholders’ list of complaints included the suspension of the NTSA’s retesting procedure.
Murkomen Halts Mandatory Driver Retesting
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