Police impound more than 12,000 boda motorcycles

Police officers engage boda boda riders during the ongoing operation in Kampala on November 8, 2022. PHOTO/ISAAC KASAMANI

What you need to know:

  • The police crackdown that commenced last week, is targeting riders without reflector jackets, crash helmets and PSV permits, among others.

A total of 12,217 boda boda motorcycles have been impounded in the ongoing operations against errant riders.

The police crackdown that commenced last week, is targeting riders without reflector jackets, crash helmets and PSV permits, among others.

The ongoing operation is still ongoing, is aimed at bringing sanity on the roads that had been messed up by indiscipline cyclists.

Addressing the journalists yesterday during the weekly security press conference in Naguru, Kampala, Ms Faridah Nampiima, the traffic and road safety spokesperson,  said: “The operation has resulted in the impounding of 12,217 motorcycles countrywide. Of these, a total of 10,167 EPS tickets were issued. At the station, we have 2,050 motorcycles parked.”

She added:  “The operations will continue until we realise that discipline on the roads by boda bodas has improved. We shall continue targeting those without reflector jackets and crash helmets.”

Explaining why as traffic police they  are strict on crash helmets, Ms Nampiima said it is because many riders have died after hitting their heads on the ground upon being involved in accidents and yet the helmets would have saved them.

About the reflector jackets, she said the same ensure the riders are visible to other motorists to avoid accidents.

Ms Nampiima scoffed at critics, who she said are against the operation, saying everything being done is meant to enforce Ugandan traffic rules and regulations.

“This country has laws that need to be complied with. I don’t think anyone criticising our operations will be happy with the figures,” Ms Nampiima said.

She revealed that a total of 1,021 boda boda riders and 401 passengers have been killed in accidents on Ugandan roads in the past nine months.


background


 The crackdown follows police reports that boda bodas are one of the major causes of accidents in the country, with at least four people dying due to motorcycle-related accidents every day.

The operation was prompted after the police released a compilation of CCTV footage of boda boda riders involved avoidable in accidents in Kampala and its suburbs such as joining busy roads without first stopping and cross checking whether it’s safe to move or not.