Passengers Onboard Super Metro Arrested During NTSA Crackdown
Other Kenyans were arrested in different parts of the country for flouting various transport laws, rules and regulations.
Passengers travelling onboard a Super Metro bus along Thika Road were on Sunday, March 31 offloaded and arrested by police officers alongside those from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).
NTSA revealed in a statement that the passengers were detained for boarding a full bus.
"Thika, Kiambu County: Excess passengers off-loaded and detained. To avoid any inconveniences, do not board an overloaded vehicle," stated NTSA.
The passengers were loaded into a waiting police vehicle and will be detained for the remainder of the Easter weekend, after which they will face charges.
A school bus subjected to NTSA safety compliance checks at Kariene, Meru/Nkubu Road on March 31, 2024. /NTSA
The arrest is part of a nationwide crackdown by the Authority to ensure safety and sanity along Kenyan roads.
Other Kenyans were arrested in different parts of the country for flouting various transport laws, rules and regulations.
Also on Sunday, several motorcycles were detained and a school bus was stopped for inspection along the Kariene, Meru/Nkubu Road.
A roadblock was erected at Nyali Bridge in Mombasa County to check for roadworthiness in vehicles using the bridge to move in and out of the island.
Several vehicles were also detained in Nyeri County following road safety compliance checks along the Nairobi-Nyeri Road as well as within Machakos town.
This came after Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kipchumba Murkomen on March 19, 2024, ordered NTSA officers to return to the roads, reversing a directive by former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
"Having consulted with my Interior and National Coordination colleague, Prof Kithure Kindiki, we are going to establish a mechanism where the previous directive to remove NTSA from enforcement will be vacated and a collaborative regime between NTSA and NPS will be put in place for a more efficient enforcement," he announced.
"You will be seeing a return of the NTSA working with traffic police to enforce traffic safety on our roads as soon as possible."
This effectively reversed an order issued by Uhuru back in 2018 which had ordered all NTSA officials to leave Kenyan roads and leave that duty to the police.
This was among the directives issued by the CS after a grisly accident occurred along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway involving a Kenyatta University bus and a trailer.