- All cars in the country will soon be fitted with speed tracking gadgets located in the most obvious locations but where drivers will have no power to control or tamper with, electronic stickers expected to be launched soon.
- Starcom Plc disclosed to UK regulators its plans to begin supplying the devices to Kenya within the next few months.
- The rollout of Third Licence Sticker, which will be mandatory for Sh700 ($7) a piece.
Kenya enlists the help of a British firm in spying on drivers as it moves to curb reckless driving
The government has enlisted the help of a British firm to spy on drivers in a move meant to put a stop to reckless driving on Kenyan roads
Kenya has enlisted the help of a British firm to spy on drivers in a move meant to put a stop to reckless driving on Kenyan roads and car theft as well as drastically lower claims payout by insurers which crossed Sh200 billion last year.
All cars in the country will soon be fitted with speed tracking gadgets located in the most obvious locations but where drivers will have no power to control or tamper with, electronic stickers expected to be launched soon and mandatory for every car to have one.
A London Stock Exchange listed firm, Starcom Plc spilled the beans after it disclosed to UK regulators its plans to begin supplying the devices to Kenya within the next few months.
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“A new opportunity in Kenya, where all vehicles will soon be required to have telematic devices fitted, has been presented to the company,” Starcom said in a trading note to investors.
The leading global provider of digital vehicle tracking headquartered in Jersey, said in a regulatory disclosure on Monday it expects to start getting orders from Nairobi within the next five months.
“We are incorporating our technology inside a portable handheld printer which will be used by local police to inspect suspicious vehicles.”
The disclosure comes ahead of the imminent rollout of electronic stickers for Kenyan vehicles which will instantly give law enforcers traffic information such as vehicle ownership, insurance and history of offences.
The rollout of Third Licence Sticker, which will be mandatory for Sh700 ($7) a piece has been delayed from the initial target of July 2017.
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The stickers will use radio-frequency technology to transmit information to the NTSA via handheld readers or overhead street cameras.
Details on the telematics record however remain sketchy.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) director-general Francis Meja on Monday, when quizzed by a local business daily on the same said he was not aware of the Starcom contract, but reiterated moving towards digital storage and retrieval of motor vehicle data.
“We will put chips in vehicles which will be updated when vehicles go for inspection. This will replace licence stickers,” Mr Meja said.
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