The Road Safety Association of Kenya (RSAK) has renewed its call for motorists to ignore instant speeding fines issued by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), insisting the penalties remain unlawful because of an existing court order that suspended their enforcement.
According to the association, a conservatory order issued on May 29 barred NTSA from implementing the instant fines system, meaning any penalties issued or collected after that date have no legal basis.
“The NTSA instant fines that are still being collected are illegal, and we are urging Kenyans to refrain from paying the instant fines even after being sent the tickets, because we have the court order that suspended NTSA from collecting the fines,” RSAK stated.
The association further appealed to motorists who have already settled the fines to reach out to its offices with proof of payment so their cases can be reviewed and possible refunds pursued.
RSAK has also intensified its criticism of NTSA's speed enforcement programme, particularly the positioning of speed cameras along major highways and expressways.
The association argues that some cameras have been installed in sections where vehicles, especially smaller cars, can safely travel at speeds of up to 110 kilometres per hour.
According to RSAK, the cameras have become "revenue traps" rather than genuine road safety measures.
It argues that forcing motorists to slow abruptly to 50 km/h zones on high-speed roads could increase the risk of serious crashes instead of preventing them.
The group also contends that advances in modern vehicle safety technology make some of the existing speed limits outdated.
In addition, RSAK accuses NTSA of placing motorists at a disadvantage through inadequate road signage, saying many drivers are penalised without receiving sufficient warning about speed restrictions or camera locations.
The association has also questioned the integrity of the instant fines system, arguing that it relies on algorithms whose accuracy has not been independently verified while denying motorists the due legal process ordinarily required before penalties are imposed.
Another major point of contention is how the fines are collected.
RSAK insists there is no legal requirement for motorists to send money directly to NTSA, maintaining that all government payments should be processed through the eCitizen platform to ensure accountability and transparency in the management of public funds.
“There is nowhere motorists are mandated to send money directly to NTSA. Anytime one sends money directly to NTSA its supposed to go directly to eCitizen, part of the reason why we went to the courts last week,” stated RSAK.
However, NTSA Director General Nashon Kondiwa has taken a different position, maintaining that motorists issued with instant traffic fines should make payments physically at designated KCB branches or authorised agents rather than through eCitizen.
According to Kondiwa, the agency intentionally adopted the physical payment system as a safeguard against fraud, arguing that eCitizen transactions, which largely rely on mobile money and bank cards, could expose motorists to SMS scams, impersonation schemes and payments being sent to the wrong accounts.
He said the additional verification layer is meant to enhance security while protecting road users from digital payment fraud.
