Bill Seeks to Strip NTSA of Accident Investigations, Create Independent Board

A Bill before Parliament seeks to establish the Kenya Transportation Safety Board, an independent agency that would take over accident investigations currently handled by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) and other transport regulators.

The Kenya Transportation Safety Board Bill, 2026, would grant the new agency authority to investigate accidents across road, rail, aviation and maritime transport, replacing what its sponsor describes as a fragmented system spread across multiple agencies.

National Assembly's Budget and Appropriations Committee, chaired by Vice Chairperson Robert Pukose, reviewed the Bill's financial implications on August 6, examining the projected cost of establishing the new board.

Limuru MP John Kiragu, who sponsored the Bill, told the committee that Kenya's recurring transport accidents highlighted the need for an institution focused solely on investigation rather than enforcement.

"We have a history of road tragedies, yet there appears to be no independent investigation body that examines accidents comprehensively and identifies solutions," Kiragu told the committee, according to reporting on the proposal.

If enacted, the board would take over accident investigation functions currently exercised by NTSA, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority, the Kenya Maritime Authority and other transport regulators.

Kiragu said the board would examine all factors contributing to accidents, including road design, vehicle condition, operational systems and human behaviour, before issuing recommendations aimed at preventing recurrence.

NTSA would retain its existing enforcement and regulatory functions under the proposal, while losing its current role in investigating the causes of road accidents.

Kiragu clarified to committee members that the proposed board would function similarly to transport safety boards in the United States and Singapore, where investigation and enforcement are kept institutionally separate.

Some MPs on the committee raised concerns about potential overlap with existing agencies, including NTSA, the Kenya Airports Authority, the Kenya Maritime Authority and the State Department for Transport.

Committee members agreed that broader stakeholder consultations would be necessary before the Bill proceeds further, to ensure the reforms complement rather than duplicate Kenya's existing transport safety framework.

The proposal also includes repealing provisions in existing transport laws that currently empower individual agencies to conduct their own accident investigations, replacing them with a single unified investigation framework.

The Bill follows years of debate over how Kenya should structure transport accident investigations, after a 2023 Cabinet decision approved the concept of a similarly independent bureau that was never fully implemented.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee is expected to conclude its review of the Bill's financial implications before determining whether it proceeds to the next stage of the parliamentary process.