Kenya's digital traffic laws and regulations enforcement system has captured millions of traffic offences since being rolled out in 2018.
Speaking during the Engineering Partnership Convention in Nyeri County on Thursday, May 9, Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) Director General Silas Kinoti revealed that 3 million offences had been captured by one single camera.
He noted that the high-tech cameras were installed on Kenyan roads on April 30, 2018, as a pilot for the intelligence transport project.
The intelligence system aims to restore order on the roads and help in the enforcement of traffic rules.
Therefore, owing to the high numbers recorded, Kinoti indicated that the full rollout would be beneficial and self-efficient owing to the high number of offences recorded.
"The introduction of e-police will be a game changer, eliminating the need for physical police presence on the roads. The e-police has demonstrated its financial viability.
"Since March 2018 until April 30, 2024, data revealed over 3 million violations captured by a single camera. This is a potential revenue stream from fines, indicating that the system can self-sustain itself," he stated.
KURA is expected to implement the ITS across major roads and junctions in urban areas.
According to KURA, ITS will involve the installation of Traffic Video Surveillance and Traffic Violation Detection at 125 intersections.
Traffic Guidance System will also be installed at 10 sites as well.
The ITS will also be used in the implementation of instant fines which is expected to be rolled out within the next three months.
How it Works
As detailed by Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, the instant fines will work as follows;
- Traffic cameras will be launched on roads to monitor offences while enforcement agencies digitise documents of motorists.
- Should an offence be captured, the system will be used to identify a motorist in the system.
- An alert will then be sent to the phones of the motorists informing them of their offence and the amount they need to pay.
"Last month, the Cabinet approved the use of the Nairobi Intelligent Transport System (ITS) to tackle frequent traffic jams at 401 junctions. The Kenya Urban Roads Authority is implementing the first phase of the system at 26 junctions.
"Furthermore, to streamline the transport sector and improve road safety, the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) is digitising motor vehicle records and drivers' history to support digital enforcement and violation capture," Murkomen revealed on April 5.
