Nearly half of the 645 people who died in road accidents in the past 11 months within Nakuru County were pedestrians, county traffic enforcement officer Mary Omari has revealed.
Omari, who addressed the press in Nakuru town on Sunday, said 224 pedestrians lost their lives out of a total of 865 accidents that occurred.
“Atleast 482 accidents out of the 864 which occurred this year were fatal. However, there was a drop from the 1,065 accidents reported over the same period last year in which 747 people were reported to have lost their lives,” said Omari.
The number of serious injuries also fell from 457 last year, compared to 368 this year.
She attributed the reduction of road carnage to extensive traffic rules awareness among the stakeholders and the public service entrepreneurs in the region.
However, the officer noted that most accidents which occur are attributed to human error and urged drivers to be cautious especially during this festive season, warning that rogue motorists who flout traffic rules will not be tolerated.
The traffic boss also reiterated that there is a need to enhance civic education on the use of zebra crossings and footbridges to reduce deaths of pedestrians on roads.
In order to curb and deal with flouters of traffic rules especially along the Nakuru-Nairobi highway, Omari said that they have partnered with the National Transport Safety Authority to erect more traffic road blocks as a means to reduce accidents during this festive season.
“We want to warn motorists against deviating from the laid down traffic rules. Many accidents occur during seasons like this because many people opt to travel to upcountry to feast with their families,” said the officer.
She challenged passengers to report whenever they feel that the driver is careless on the road so as to help control road carnage.
The Nakuru-Nairobi highway has been cited as one of the deadliest roads that record many fatal accidents yearly.
Areas like Kinungi in Naivasha, Delemere, Kikopey, Barnabas, Free area, Sachagwan, Molo, and Burnt Forest are common black spots for road accidents along the highway.