The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) will be introducing anti-rolling body standard gadgets by the end of May this year, Director General Francis Meja told a parliamentary committee on Friday.

Mr Meja, who appeared before the parliamentary committee on Transport said the move will help to curb fatalities, which spiked to nearly 250 in December only.

“All Passenger Service Vehicles [PSV] to be fitted with anti-rolling body standard by May to curb fatalities,” Mr Meja told the committee when he appeared for grilling.

President Uhuru Kenyatta last week Tuesday directed that all NTSA officers out of the Kenyan roads, and urged traffic police officers to take over their duties, in a bid to curb road crashes.

The president spoke in Meru during the burial of three African Independent Pentecostal Church of Africa (AIPCA) bishops who died in a grisly crash at Wamumu along the Embu-Nairobi highway on December 29, 2017.

“I agree that road accidents have been on the rise and the government will work to ensure we minimise the accidents. We have decided that all NTSA officers withdraw from the roads and leave traffic work to the police. We want to see if we can restore order on the roads,” the President said.

The new strategy by the NTSA is set to ignite yet another debate on the ability of the authority to curb road carnages, even after the use of alcoblow seemingly failed to reap off.

How it works

The anti-rolling body standard gadget, which is basically an anti-sway bars is used along with shock absorbers or struts to give a moving automobile additional stability. It is a metal rod that spans the entire axle and effectively joins each side of the suspension together.

When the suspension at one wheel moves up and down, the anti-sway bar transfers movement to the other wheel. This creates a more level ride and reduces vehicle sway.

It combats the roll of a car on its suspension as it corners and when speeding.