The government has halted the retesting of Public Service Vehicle (PSV) drivers in order to address concerns raised by various stakeholders, even as players raised questions about the integrity of the exercise.

Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen suspended the retesting until September 1, awaiting the formation of a multi-agency committee to review grievances raised by drivers and conductors.

In a statement issued on July 11, Murkomen says names of officials representing all industry players will be submitted to his office by August 1. The exercise, he adds, will take 14 days and the report, with recommendations, submitted for further decision-making.

“Taking note of the above, I hereby halt the re-testing of drivers until September 1 to give the multi-agency committee time to address the rising concerns,” the statement reads.

The re-testing has come under criticism with stakeholders claiming it had been plagued by corruption and that the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) lacked the capacity to carry out the exercise professionally.

Eyesight

Road Safety Association of Kenya Chairman David Kiarie said only refresher courses through driving schools can be effective.

“The re-testing was nothing but an avenue for corruption where drivers are asked to part with Sh5,000 or more to be declared to have passed,” said the official.

Kiarie added that for the exercise to be meaningful, drivers should undergo a medical examination to determine their eyesight and hearing capabilities which NTSA cannot do.

“The process needs to be standardised,” he stated.

Murkomen’s move also comes as statistics show that only 31 per cent of the 1,847 drivers of commercial and PSV vehicles who underwent the re-testing between June 9 and 30 had passed.

The re-testing, which also involves drivers of school transportation, is a prerequisite for renewal of driving licenses with the class endorsement: B3, D1, D2, D3, C, C1, CE and CD categories.

Road signals

Following the rise in road fatalities, the Roads and Transport Ministry on April 19 directed the implementation of a number of measures which included the retesting of drivers in accordance with provisions of Section 30(6) of the Traffic Act.

The Act provides that a driver of a PSV or a commercial vehicle will, every three years, be required to undergo a driving test as a condition for each renewal of a driving license.

It includes a test of the applicant’s knowledge of the rules of the road, knowledge of recognized road signals and signs, knowledge of any authorized road or Highway Code and physical fitness to drive a vehicle of the class for which the license is required.

The ages for the re-testing range from 21 years to (for the youngest) and 65 years (for the oldest) depending on categorisation of the licenses.

In the PSV classification, for category D1 which enables one to drive a van with a maximum of 14 passengers, the minimum age is 22 years and maximum 65 years.

Category D2 enables one to drive a mini-bus with a capacity of 14 to 32 passengers and the minimum age is 25 years and a maximum of 65 years and an experience of driving category D1 vehicles.

In category D3 (large bus), which enables one to drive a bus with 33 or more passengers, the minimum age is 30 years and a maximum of 65 years, plus three years of driving vehicles of a similar category.

An analysis of driver re-test in 13 regions in June shows that Nairobi leads with an average total of 978 re-tested and only 297 passed.

Thika followed with 230 re-tests and only 51 passes. In third position was Mombasa with 180 re-tests and 80 passes. Out of the total of 1,847 re-tested, only 576 passed representing 31 per cent. The rest (1,176) failed.

Meanwhile, the CS also issued the latest data on road traffic deaths which indicates that so far 2,318 people had died as of July 5 this year majority of them being motorcyclists and pillion passengers (867).