Outer Ring Road is a dangerous road.
According to exclusive data obtained by K24 Digital from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), the road has claimed the lives of hundreds of people within a short period of time.
In 2022 alone, (from January to December), the road claimed 58 lives, out of which 43 were pedestrians, 8 motorcyclists, 3 drivers, 3 pillion passengers, and one passenger.
Interestingly, 78 % of the casualties (translating to 45 deaths) were as a result of accidents that took place between 7:00 pm and 6: 00 am during the period. Out of these 45 deaths, 32 were pedestrians, 7 motorcyclists, 3 drivers, and 3 pillion passengers.
The 58 who died in the accidents comprised 56 adults and two children aged 9 and 3. The adults were aged between 18 and 62 years.
According to the NTSA data, most people who died on the road as a result of accidents during the period were males. Out of the 58 deaths, 45 were males with females being 11.
The gender of two bodies was recorded as unknown by NTSA.
This figure is a 32% increase in recorded deaths from accidents on Outering Road in 2022 compared to 2021.
But it’s over 5 % of the total deaths recorded this year (2023) across the country. By April 2023, a total of 1,072 deaths had been recorded from road accidents in the country.
In particular, between January and March 2023, Outering Road and Eastern bypass had recorded the highest number of deaths in Nairobi.
Cabinet Secretary for Roads and Transport Kipchumba Murkomen confirmed in April that of the 1,072 people, 362 are pedestrians, 302 are motorcyclists, 184 are passengers, 101 are pillion passengers, 104 are drivers while 94 are pedal cyclists.
And he explained the cause of some of the road accidents. “The number of passenger deaths is attributed to speeding vehicles, crossing at undesignated places, distracted driving or walking and drunk driving,” Murkomen said in a statement in April.
People who died from accidents on Outering Road in 2022 by Chrisphine MagakNotably, there was a general drop in road accident deaths in the same period compared to 2022 where 1,159 deaths were recorded between January and March.
The report by NTSA further indicates that Machakos County had the highest number of driver fatalities with many of the accidents occurring along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway.
Nakuru and Meru counties had the highest number of motorcyclist and pillion passenger fatalities (at 33 and 30 deaths respectively) while Nairobi and Kiambu Counties had the highest number of pedestrian fatalities (at 56 and 45 deaths respectively) during the same period.
Overall, Nairobi recorded the highest fatality at 101 deaths many of which occurred along the Eastern bypass and Outering road. Nakuru was second with 93 deaths within the same period.
Motorcycles and private vehicles contributed the highest number of fatalities between January and March this year at 284 and 272 deaths respectively.
Sunday and Saturday toped in the number of road accident deaths at 192 and 184 respectively, with a combination of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday accounting for 48.4 % of fatal accidents, with most of the accidents occurring between 5:00 pm and 11:00 pm hours – the peak being 8:00 pm.
This was attributed to the high travel numbers, speeding especially along major highways, and reduced enforcement.
In terms of gender, the majority of those who died from road accidents are men at 83%, attributed to risky behaviour on the roads, and distracted driving/walking/riding.
In 2021, 44 deaths were recorded from accidents that occurred on the road, and the government was forced to erect barricades to prevent the recurrence of accidents.
Efforts by the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) to set up at least 11 footbridges across the 13-kilometre stretch, have not been helpful.
Notable footbridges along the busy road include Mutindwa which connects Buruburu and Umoja 1 estates, Kware footbridge (connecting Kware and Tassia estates), Fedha footbridge (connecting Fedha and Tumaini/Avenue Estate estates) and Pipeline footbridge which connects Pipeline and Telaviv estates.
A spot check by K24 Digital shows that pedestrians still prefer crossing the road instead of using the footbridges and zebra crossing along the road, in total disregard of the fact that the habit endangers their lives.
Outer Ring black spots
Mutindwa and the area between Fedha and Donholm are considered black spots along Outer Ring Road where many lives have been lost. Interestingly the Mutindwa stage where most people are knocked down is adjacent to a footbridge which many do not use.
Raphael Munene, who uses Outer Ring Road to and from work says that most of the people living along the road avoid using Mutindwa footbridge and opt to cross the road as a shortcut.
“I think one of the reasons why most accidents occur on Outering Road is because many people who live around don’t want to use the footbridge. They cross the road to save time despite the fact that it’s dangerous to do so with moving cars,” Raphael told K24 Digital.
However, he laments that there’s a need to install security lights along the footbridge.
“But the government is also to blame for not installing security lights on the footbridge. Muggers and thieves have taken advantage of the situation and turned the footbridge a crime spot, thereby scaring people from using the footbridge,” he said.
In August 2019, the NTSA ranked Outering Road the second deadliest road after Mombasa Road.
Before that, the authority had ranked Outering Road as the most dangerous highway in Nairobi in June 2018.
Safety measures
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has announced new measures the ministry, through NTSA, is taking to reduce the number of road accidents in the country.
Speaking at the inauguration of the new Board of the NTSA on April 3, 2023, he instructed NTSA to heighten surveillance to crack down on all unroadworthy school vans, buses, and matatus operating across the country and also work with the police to arrest all reckless drivers.
“Drivers should avoid using mobile phones while driving, speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol, and carrying passengers who are not wearing safety belts,” Murkomen said.
The CS further noted that, with the ongoing plans to deploy Integrated Traffic Management System (ITMS), the ministry will ensure the installation of CCTV cameras in 81 junctions in Nairobi and the installation of traffic and speed cameras along the highways especially the black spots among other measures.
“This will assist in curbing reckless driving by introducing instant fines and demerit points system for the ill-behaved motorists,” CS Murkomen said.
On his part, the Transport Principal Secretary Mohamed Daghar said that the ministry will be conducting registration, training, and capacity enhancement for bodaboda operators in a bid to create safety awareness and ensure they observe traffic rules while at work.
Daghar added that the ministry is working on developing a reporting platform for accidents and that it will also work together with the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) and medical practitioners to ensure accident victims get professional care.
“Plans are underway to develop an accident reporting platform for citizens to be notifying the relevant agencies in case of accidents,” he stated.
Meanwhile, on Monday, April 24, 2023, NTSA board, sent its Director General George Njao, on a 30-day compulsory leave, to pave the way for investigations into the increased number of accidents in the country.
Addressing the media on the matter, NTSA Chairman Aden Noor Ali said that a special committee had been formed to help in the investigations.
On the same date, the board appointed Cosmas Ngeso to serve as the Director General in an acting capacity.
