The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has developed new curriculum for training and testing of drivers.
NTSA Director-General Francis Meja on Sunday said the curriculum will be rolled out in October.
He said driving school instructors are undergoing training on the new curriculum to enable them to equip their students with the necessary skills.
“Other handbooks developed to guide trainees at driving schools include the Highway Code, as well as learner’s handbooks for light and professional drivers, truck drivers and motorcycle riders,” Mr Meja said.
He added: “The curriculum covers both theoretical learning, practical training and examinations.”
The new system will see students undergo 24 to 160 hours of training, depending on the category, before being issued with a licence.
The development of the curriculum was necessitated by the fact that road traffic accidents kill more than 3,000 people in Kenya every year, with 80 per cent of these crashes being a result of human behaviour-related factors.
“Therefore, the need to provide sufficient education and skills to enable our drivers to use and follow rules and regulations became a priority,” explained Meja.
“Drivers have a high sense of responsibility and their actions can affect lives of many people.
This is why they have to be thoroughly trained and skilled.”
He said the curriculum will result in specialisation since every trainee will specialise in their area of interest, unlike before.
“For instance, a motorcyclist will undergo a separate training from a light vehicle driver,” Mr Meja said.
Units to be covered under the curriculum include vehicle construction and controls, self-inspection of vehicles, vehicle control or manoeuvre yard, communication on the road, space management, adverse driving conditions, emergency procedures and customer care.
“In every category, there are terms and condition of training, this includes the age of the students,” Mr Meja added.
The new categories of drivers are motorcycle rider, light vehicle drivers, professional light vehicle drivers (PLV), public service vehicle drivers (PSV), motorcycle and three-wheel drivers, truck drivers, special professional drivers (SPDL) and industrial construction and agricultural machine operators (ICA).
One of the mandates of the authority is to establish systems and procedures for and overseeing the training, testing and licensing of drivers.
