Motorists in Kenya are likely to experience fatal accidents on Sundays, a report by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) indicates.
According to the report for the 2019-2020 financial year, Sundays had the most fatal accidents recorded in 2019, accounting for 646 accidents. This marked a 27.4 percent surge in cases compared to 550 accidents recorded in 2018.
Sunday was followed by Saturday which accounted for 612 accidents in 2019 from 550 accidents in the year 2018.
According to the report, Thursdays are the least fatal days to drive in Kenya, with 438 fatalities. Thursday also recorded the least deaths for the second consecutive year.
NTSA also found that the most precarious time to drive in Kenya is during the non visibility period from 5 pm to 8 pm, which recorded a total of 1,021 deaths. This accounted for 68.5% of the fatal accidents recorded in 2019 compared to 31.5% during the visibility period.
The roads authority also established that Nairobi is the most dangerous county to drive in. Road accidents in the capital claimed 433 lives in 2019 compared to 439 in 2018.
Kiambu county ranked second in road carnage with 311 fatalities, up from 290 recorded the previous year.
Also Read: Number of Road Accident Fatalities This Year
Commercial and privately owned vehicles are the major causes of deaths on Kenyan roads, recording 902 and 871 deaths since the start of the year respectively.
Motorcycles and private cars followed closely with 672 and 548 deaths respectively. Public Service Vehicles (PSV) accounted for 532 a decrease from 569 the previous year.
Pedestrians topped the list of road deaths with 1,376 having died since January, compared to last year’s 1,250. Passengers followed with 565 deaths, a decrease from last year’s 786.
Motorcyclists recorded 875 fatalities, an increase from 633 deaths recorded last year. The number of drivers dropped by 1 to 309 compared to 310 recorded in 2018.
Noting the alarming rate at which road accidents are causing fatalities, the report said if the trend continues, Kenya expects to experience more than 2.4 million deaths per year by the year 2030.
