The Kisumu–Kakamega tragedy Is a grim reminder that Kenya’s road safety crisis is out of control
By Ascah Mwango, August 9, 2025Kenya’s roads are once again in the spotlight following the horrific Kisumu–Kakamega road accident that claimed 25 lives.
The Kisumu–Kakamega tragedy is not an isolated case. Just weeks earlier, multiple accidents along the Nairobi–Mombasa highway and the Nakuru–Eldoret road claimed dozens of lives. These tragedies follow a worrying trend that has become all too familiar: blood on our highways, grief in our homes, and a nation asking the same questions after every incident.
Kenya is losing too many lives on the roads every day. In 2023, official figures recorded 4,324 deaths from road accidents, a slight drop from 4,432 in 2022. However, the World Health Organisation estimates the real figure could be much higher, at close to 15,000 annually, because many incidents go unreported.
By mid-September 2024, 3,369 people had died on our roads, which means an average of 374 people every month or at least 12 deaths every single day. These are not just numbers; they are fathers, mothers, children and friends. They include 1,281 pedestrians, 825 motorcyclists, 654 passengers and 281 drivers whose lives were cut short.
Culprits of road accidents
The situation is being driven by a combination of factors. Our roads are expanding more slowly than our growing towns and cities, leaving new areas without proper sidewalks, lighting or traffic signs. Many highways and urban roads are riddled with potholes and uneven surfaces. Markings fade quickly after being painted, and road furniture such as guardrails and signage is often missing or broken. Poor design remains a serious issue, with blackspots like the Coptic roundabout in Kisumu and other dangerous curves across the country claiming lives year after year.
Human behaviour has made matters worse. Speeding, reckless overtaking, driving under the influence, and using phones behind the wheel are common habits on Kenyan roads. In many cases, drivers escape penalties through corruption, weakening law enforcement efforts. Over-speeding remains the biggest culprit, with many drivers ignoring speed limits, especially on highways. Reckless driving, dangerous overtaking, drunk driving, and failure to observe traffic rules continue to cost lives.
Matatus and bodabodas are often blamed for flouting rules, but enforcement is inconsistent and selective. There is also little respect for pedestrian crossings, with walkers often left to fight for space on roads that have no footpaths.
On August 8, 2025, the country was reminded yet again of the human cost of these failures. A bus carrying mourners from Kakamega to Kisumu veered off the Coptic roundabout at high speed, overturned into a ditch and killed 25 people.
Twenty-one died on the spot, while four others succumbed in hospital. Another 28 passengers were injured. Survivors and witnesses said the bus was moving fast before it lost control at the curve, a stretch that residents have long described as a death trap.
Same script
This was not an isolated incident. Only weeks earlier, multiple people were killed along the Nairobi–Mombasa Highway in separate crashes involving trucks and private cars. In Nakuru County, a tragic collision between a lorry and a matatu left over ten people dead. In each case, the causes were familiar: poor road conditions, dangerous driving, and lack of timely intervention to correct known hazards.
The response to the Kisumu tragedy followed a familiar script. Authorities sent teams to investigate. Leaders issued condolences and promised action. The NTSA pledged to carry out safety audits, while political leaders called for a review of infrastructure and stricter enforcement of traffic laws. But on the ground, many Kenyans doubt whether these promises will translate into real change.
Kenya has a National Road Safety Action Plan running from 2024 to 2028, which aims to cut deaths and serious injuries by half. It focuses on improving infrastructure, enforcing traffic rules, raising public awareness and regulating the bodaboda sector. There have been small drops in fatalities in early 2025, but the numbers remain unacceptably high.
Every person lost on our roads leaves behind grieving families, shattered communities and deep scars on the nation. These tragedies are preventable. The Kisumu–Kakamega crash, like so many before it, is not just a sad event to be mourned and forgotten. It is a grim reminder that Kenya’s road safety crisis is out of control, and that without urgent action, we will keep burying victims and calling it fate.