NTSA Faces Loss of Crash Probe Mandates Under Proposed Transport Law

The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) could lose its power to investigate road crashes under a proposed law currently before Parliament.

Sponsoring the legislative proposal, Limuru Member of Parliament (MP) John Kiragu presented the Kenya Transportation Safety Board Bill, 2026 to lawmakers for scrutiny. The National Assembly Budget and Appropriations Committee reviewed the financial implications of establishing the new state entity on Thursday.

Endebess Member of Parliament (MP) Robert Pukose chaired the committee session as legislators evaluated the preliminary operational costs. If passed into law, the legislation will establish the Kenya Transportation Safety Board (KTSB) as an independent investigative authority.

The proposed entity will assume exclusive responsibility for examining transport disasters across the country. Its mandate covers accidents occurring within road, rail, aviation, and maritime networks.

Existing sector regulators currently handle crash investigations alongside their primary administrative duties. The new framework will strip these investigative mandates from the regulatory agencies.

Affected entities include NTSA, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), and the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA). However, these institutions will retain their statutory regulation and enforcement powers.

While defending the measure, Kiragu argued that Kenya requires a dedicated body focused entirely on root-cause analysis. He noted that road fatalities continue to rise despite enforcement efforts by current regulators.

The lawmaker explained that the proposed entity will not prosecute offenders or enforce traffic laws. Instead, it will publish impartial safety recommendations for regulatory authorities to implement.

Under the proposal, KTSB will consist of seven board members, a Director-General, and a Corporation Secretary. The draft law also repeals specific clauses in existing transport legislation to prevent overlapping jurisdiction.

During committee deliberations, Kisumu County Woman Representative Ruth Odinga welcomed the proposal, when she cited high casualty rates on public roads. She urged Parliament to adopt measures that strengthen safety oversight.

Eldas Member of Parliament (MP) Adan Keynan urged caution regarding public expenditure and institutional overlap. He noted that Kenya already maintains multiple transport bodies, which requires careful legislative coordination.

Kiragu clarified that establishing an autonomous investigator aligns national transport safety policies with international operational standards. Sectoral regulators often face structural conflicts of interest, when they investigate incidents within their own operational jurisdictions.

The proposed legislation seeks to eliminate these conflicts by separating regulatory enforcement from disaster investigation. Lawmakers will complete the financial assessment before referring the draft law to the floor of Parliament for debate.

Recent road safety reports indicate that fatal collisions remain a major challenge across major highway corridors. Transport sector analysts maintain that independent accident reporting remains crucial for improving infrastructure designs and vehicle standards.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee will submit its preliminary financial findings to Parliament ahead of the second reading.