EACC, NTSA Roll Out Nationwide Traffic Crackdown Ahead of Festive Season

By : Mweru Mbugua

The government has launched a nationwide traffic enforcement operation ahead of the holiday season, targeting road safety violations and corruption on major highways and urban routes

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), in collaboration with the Traffic Police Department, has initiated coordinated patrols focusing on high-risk road corridors as travel volumes rise during the festive period

The operation, implemented under resolutions of the National Council on the Administration of Justice, includes the deployment of officers from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to monitor enforcement activities and deter bribery at checkpoints

Murkomen said the measures will feature joint multi-agency operations, increased police visibility, and the use of both physical and electronic deterrence tools. Mobile courts will also be deployed on key highways to enable instant prosecution of traffic offenders

Motorists have been urged to plan their journeys early, adjust travel schedules, and use alternative routes to ease congestion

Those travelling from Nairobi to Western Kenya and Nyanza have been advised to use the Nairobi–Suswa–Narok route as an alternative to the Mai Mahiu escarpment, while motorists heading through the Central region have been encouraged to consider the Nairobi–Nyeri–Nyahururu–Nakuru route

The traffic crackdown is part of a broader festive season security operation that also includes a parallel campaign by the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) targeting illicit brews and drugs, which authorities say contribute to road accidents and insecurity

EACC has warned motorists against offering bribes to evade traffic laws, saying the practice endangers lives

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Speaking in Makueni County, EACC Western Kenya regional director Eric Ngumbi said drivers must stop risking passengers’ lives through overloading, reckless driving and corruption

“Drivers must take responsibility for the passengers they carry. Breaking traffic rules and bribing officers only leads to unnecessary loss of life,” Ngumbi said

He added that the commission will conduct surveillance on major roads nationwide to arrest both motorists and traffic officers found engaging in bribery, and called on the public to speak out against reckless driving

The warning comes after Chief Justice Martha Koome announced that the Judiciary will deploy mobile courts on major highways, working alongside the National Police Service, NTSA and EACC to enforce traffic laws through arrests and instant prosecution during the holiday season

Authorities say the combined measures aim to curb the rising number of road accidents, which have claimed thousands of lives across the country in recent months