Govt Announces Instant Fines for Traffic Offenders Amid Rising Road Carnage
Kenya motorists who break traffic rules will soon face automatic fines under a new technology-based system to curb road accidents, Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir has announced.
The new system was launched during the National Road Safety Conference in Mombasa where cameras will be placed at key junctions across the country to capture violations. The footage will be sent to a central control room where fines will be processed immediately reducing the burden on courts.
“We are in the final stages and the Cabinet will issue a memo,” Chirchir told the participants. “We are bringing the police, judiciary and NTSA together as enforcers. When there is instant discipline, motorists will not misbehave on the road.”
This comes as grim figures from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) show road crashes are one of the country’s biggest problems. Between January and September 2025, at least 3,397 people have died – 12 people a day. Pedestrians and motorcyclists have recorded the highest fatalities with 1,285 and 858 deaths respectively.
Compared to the same period last year, this year has already recorded 28 more deaths with 17,270 people affected. 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm is the riskiest period with alcohol, reduced visibility and lighter traffic contributing to the increase in crashes.
To curb reckless driving, the government has drafted new Traffic (Drink Driving) Regulations 2025 as part of a five-year National Road Safety Action Plan. The plan targets accident prone blackspots, unroadworthy vehicles and alcohol related crashes.
But questions remain on how the instant fines system will be funded and maintained. Chirchir admitted funding and sustainability is still under discussion even as Cabinet approval is near.
Road safety measures will also be tied to ongoing infrastructure projects including the Rironi–Mau Summit highway expansion, dualling of the Kwa Jomvu–Mariakani road, upgrades on the Nyali–Mtwapa–Kilifi corridor, pedestrian bridges on Nairobi’s Outer Ring Road BRT line and blackspot improvements at Ngata Bridge in Nakuru, Bonje in Kilifi and sections of the Kisumu–Kakamega highway.But still.
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Govt Announces Instant Fines for Traffic Offenders Amid Rising Road Carnage