Battle to Bring Sanity to a Chaotic Transport Sector

The Sh437 million integrated camera and traffic lights system already being mounted in Nairobi is the first step in the new battle to bring sanity to a chaotic transport sector.

The project will be replicated in other urban towns in the country.

In addition, the camera system will be used as a crime fighting tool and where a vehicle is suspected to have been involved in criminal activity, it will have its registration plates circulated by police.

Any vehicle caught on camera causing a traffic violation will be photographed and a ticket mailed to the registered vehicle owner who must respond within a specified number of days, failure to which a warrant of arrest will be issued to the registered vehicle owner.

The cameras are expected to have a facial recognition mechanism that captures the face of the driver involved in the violation.

NTSA plans to have the Tims system enabled with text and email capability to communicate with the offending driver. If a driver runs a red light at, say, the Uhuru Highway roundabout, a text message will be sent to the vehicle owner’s registered phone number, instantly pointing out the violation. In addition, a printed copy will be sent via mail to the registered postal address on the KRA records.

The camera system will also help police track and follow stolen vehicles by monitoring the cars’ movements.

Police officers will be armed with tablets that have printing capability. Once an officer flags down a motorist for any other traffic violation, he will swipe the smart driver licence and run the vehicle registration on his tablet. This will enable him access driver information and show any previous violations.

Once the officer runs the registration, he can fine the driver on the spot or give him or her a warning depending on the driving record.

There will be three central control centres for Nairobi.

News Source: STANDARD Digital