NAIROBI, Kenya — As Kenyans prepare for the December Christmas festive season, thousands of drivers flagged by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) could face mandatory re-testing as part of an intensified drive to reduce road accidents.
The new measures were announced on Sunday, November 16, by NTSA Director General Angela Wanjira.
Wanjira said the fresh re-testing policy targets drivers who have been identified through enforcement operations and the agency’s Intelligent Road Safety Management System (IRSMS), a digital platform launched in 2023 that monitors driving behavior in real time.
The system tracks data on speed, braking patterns, overtaking, and route compliance, sending alerts when dangerous driving breaches are detected.
“Drivers flagged via IRSMS will be required to re-sit driving assessments to confirm their competence and ensure they meet safety standards,” Wanjira said.
Under the festive-season strategy, NTSA will enforce real-time IRSMS transmission in commercial fleets and passenger service vehicles (PSVs), keeping a constant watch over drivers’ performance.
Those who violate safety norms risk losing their licences and will be subjected to “corrective measures,” according to the DG.
In addition to re-testing, NTSA plans to expand its Usalama Barabarani (Road Safety) programme. The initiative promotes seatbelt use, warns against driver fatigue, and encourages responsible road behavior.
The authority will also run pre-festive inspection clinics at bus terminuses to check vehicle roadworthiness ahead of the December travel rush.
Wanjira noted that many transport operators expect a business surge during the holidays as Kenyans travel to visit family in the countryside.
To ensure safety, she said, “we shall intensify multi-agency enforcement together with the National Police Service,” urging a shift from reactive to preventive approaches in managing road safety.
The focus on re-testing comes amid troubling statistics: NTSA reported a 2.6pc rise in road crash victims in 2025 compared to the previous year, underscoring the urgency of tighter safety measures.
Road-safety experts have welcomed the move, saying that retraining and re-assessment can help address risky driving behaviors before they result in fatal crashes. “By targeting drivers already flagged by IRSMS, NTSA is combining technology with enforcement in a smart, data-driven way,” said one analyst.
But the policy may not be without challenges. In the past, mandatory re-testing has sparked resistance. For instance, in 2023, re-testing for PSV and heavy-commercial drivers was suspended following industry pushback.
Still, Wanjira argued that the stakes are too high to ignore. “This crackdown is not about punishment alone — it’s about ensuring that every driver on our roads during the festive season is alert, compliant, and safe,” she said.
With these measures, NTSA aims to curb the holiday spike in road accidents historically observed during large-scale travel periods — a season when many Kenyans hit the roads to reconnect with loved ones.
