Killer truck in Nyeri-Mweiga road accident did not have speed gadget , safety officials say
Road safety players have disclosed that the lorry that was involved in a grisly road accident that claimed 16 lives along the Nyeri-Nyahururu road last Saturday did not have a speed limiter.
Officials of the Road Safety Association of Kenya also blamed the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) for failing to repair the potholed road stretch, noting that it may have contributed to the fatal accident.
The ten-tonne lorry ferrying firewood reportedly rammed the matatu traveling from Nyeri to Mweiga, a short distance from the Dedan Kimathi University of Technology on Saturday night, killing 15 passengers on the spot while one survivor died on arrival at the Nyeri provincial hospital.
Road Safety Association Chairman David Kiarie who visited the accident scene accompanied by Speed Governors and Road Safety Association Secretary General John Mutisya said the accident could have been avoided if the relevant government agencies had played their part.
Kiarie accused KeNHA of sleeping on the job and only responding by patching up sections of the highways whenever a fatal accident occurs.
“These deaths could have been avoided if those charged with maintaining our roads did their work because money from the fuel levy deducted from motorists is meant for that purpose,
“Similarly, those who allowed the unroadworthy lorry on the road without a speed governor should be prosecuted as this amounts to putting the lives of Kenyans to grave danger,” stated Kiarie.
He added that all trucks and other vehicles weighing above three tonnes should be recalled and inspected afresh to ensure they comply with the traffic regulations, noting that most of the fatal accidents involve these heavy vehicles.
Mutisya maintained that the truck was speeding at the time it collided with the matatu while evidence gathered at the scene showed existence of a deep pothole that driver may have attempted to avoid when his vehicle hit the matatu.
“Part of the evidence we gathered from the scene indicates existence a pothole nearly which may have made the lorry driver to swerve in a futile attempt to avoid hitting the matatu,” Mutisya added.
At the same time, while appreciating the change of guard at the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), the safety officials said action should be taken on those who allow public transport vehicles on the roads without speed limiters or undergoing inspection.
Mutisya divulged that the country loses upto Sh 800 billion every year through road accidents, representing 5 percent of the gross domestic product, a reality that he said must be checked.
The safety officials who also inspected the mangled wreckages of both vehicles at the Nyeri police station, questioned the effectiveness of cameras installed on the highways in efforts to arrest road carnage.
Kiarie said driver fatigue has also contributed to the fatal road crashes as most drivers work for more than the legal 8 hours, affecting their ability to be alert on the roads.
“We have come to establish that most owners of heavy trucks do not want to employ two drivers and have instead made them to be on the roads for very many hours beyond the legal 8-hours, which subjects them to fatigue,” the official lamented.
