Axle-load compliance on Kenya's key transport corridors has passed 99%, the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) says. The authority credits closer monitoring, automated weighbridges and its work with truck drivers, fleet owners and cargo loaders. Pulse Live Kenya reported the update on Thursday.
KeNHA singled out two weighbridges. Juja, on Thika Road, handles about 3,000 trucks a day, and between five and 10 are reportedly found non-compliant. Kanyonyo, on the Thika-Garissa Road, handles about 1,500 trucks a day and catches an average of two overloaded vehicles. KeNHA says it is also running more awareness campaigns at quarries, industrial sites and loading points. There, transporters learn the legal weight limits and how to spread a load properly before they set off.
Axle load is the weight carried by a single axle. A truck can be within its total permitted weight and still break the law if too much of that weight sits on one axle or axle group. A sand truck with its cargo piled at the back, for example, can overload its rear axles. Kenya regulates both axle loads and gross vehicle weight. The East African Community Vehicle Load Control Act, 2016, caps gross vehicle weight at 56 tonnes. Trucks may have no more than seven axles and must meet a bridge formula based on axle spacing.
The authority uses three kinds of weighbridges. At static ones, trucks stop on a platform to be weighed. Virtual weighbridges use High-Speed Weigh-in-Motion technology. Sensors and cameras classify trucks and send the data to a control centre, so trucks can be screened without the usual stop. Mobile units let enforcement teams carry out checks on routes with no permanent station. KeNHA says this mix has helped it track trucks that use feeder roads and alternative routes.
Overloaded trucks cannot simply carry on. The excess cargo must be offloaded or redistributed, and the truck weighed again. Under the EAC framework, the transporter pays an overloading fee, and the truck may be held until it is paid. Separately, Section 58 of Kenya's Traffic Act provides for a court fine of up to Sh400,000, up to two years in jail, or both.
Pulse Live Kenya noted that overloading damages roads and bridges and raises public maintenance costs. Extra weight also affects braking, stability and tyres, especially on steep roads. The outlet said that keeping compliance this high depends on reliable equipment, consistent enforcement and cooperation from transporters.