Govt Pushes for the Introduction of Tachographs to Monitor Drivers; How They Work

The National Council on the Administration of Justice on Traffic Accidents and Deaths has recommended installing tachographs on Kenyan vehicles.

Speaking on Monday, March 1, President William Ruto disclosed that tachographs will monitor drivers' fatigue.

The devices will be among the items on the checklist when vehicles undergo inspection.

"On vehicles and drivers, I notice that the report calls for the strengthening of mandatory inspection of vehicles and motorcycles, and the installation of digital fatigue monitoring systems such as tachographs," Ruto stated.

A tachograph is a digital recording device fitted especially on heavy vehicles and buses to track driving times, speed and rest periods to enhance road safety.

Drivers will use a smart card with a microchip imprinted with their personal details, which will be inserted into the device whenever the driver gets behind the wheel.

The card stores the driving activity, such as speed, driving time, distance covered, and rest periods, which can be relayed to the authorities or the company operating the vehicles.

Digital tachograms are also fitted with Global Navigation Satellite Systems and have enhanced anti-tampering measures such as encryption keys. This means that drivers cannot alter the data stored.

While modern personal vehicles are fitted with modern systems that alert drivers to take a rest after driving for long hours, the systems cannot be monitored by the police or safety agencies.

Other than driver fatigue, the report listed reckless driving, speeding, drunk driving, poor driver training, unroadworthy vehicles, counterfeit spare parts and unsafe road design as the leading causes of accidents.

The report further recommended that traffic officers wear body cameras to clamp down on roadside bribery by traffic offenders.

"On police and integrity reforms, the report recommends the deployment of body-worn cameras for traffic officers and enhanced anti-bribery mechanisms," Ruto stated.

In 2025, 5,009 Kenyans died in road accidents, an increase of 261 from the previous year. Of these, 415 deaths were recorded during the festive season.