National Transport and Safety Authority NTSA’s recommendation to re-introduce night travel ban to help reduce the increasing road accidents has been termed harmful to the Matatu sector in the country.
According to the Matatu Welfare Association MWA Secretary General Sammy Gitau, the move could pose negative impact to the economic growth should NTSA make good it threat.
Speaking to Baraka FM on Tuesday, Mr. Gitaua who also serves as the Coast branch chairman argued NTSA should tighten its grips on security instead of taking measures which might render other people jobless.
”It’s unfair to punish everybody in the industry just because of a mistake done by individual, as the stakeholders we don’t support unusual characters in our roads but NTSA must improve on its way of managing safety,”
”For the development of our economy we must embrace working 24hrs a day, therefore NTSA just like the police should deploy their officers to enforce law even at night,” said Mr. Gitau.
NTSA’s director General Francis Meja on Saturday hinted at the re-introduction of the night travel ban following the Saturday’s Gilgil accident that left at least 19 people dead.
The Government had imposed the ban in 2014 before lifting it early 2015 after a section of public service vehicle Sacco’s went to court accusing the ministry of transport of imposing the travel ban without following rules guiding the transports sector.
According to NTSA’s statistics a total of 1,097 deaths were recorded between January and April this years compared to 2016 where the number was 1,176 with motor cyclists leading with 190 followed by passengers 96.
