National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) opened new offices on Thursday and launched the Smart Driving License in Garissa town that will also cover the regions’ two other counties of Wajir, Mandera.
The inauguration will be a huge relief for drivers from the North Eastern region and neighbouring Tana River counties who had to travel over 375 kilometres to Nairobi to acquire the new smart driving license.
Addressing the press after the launch today, Head of Licensing Col (Rtd) Hared Adan said applicants will receive their smart driving license within 72 hours upon registering and booking with NTSA online where particulars are captured biometrically.
Drivers holding the old driving licenses and who wish to replace the same will be required to pay a fee of Ksh3, 050.
Hared advised the drivers in need of the services to visit their new offices located at the old police inspection yard just before the former provincial headquarters in Garissa town.
Other services the office offers include the issuance of road service licenses, PSV badges and logbook transfers.
Hared noted that unlike before, the interim license will no longer be issued to those who have completed driving school lessons but they will be enrolled and given smart driving licenses after passing the tests.
Garissa County Roads CEC Abdi Farah urged the NTSA to open the same offices in Wajir and Mandera which he said are still far from Garissa.
Farah said that it would still be expensive for residents of Mandera which is over 700 kilometres from Garissa while Wajir is slightly over 300 kilometres away.
“The whole idea of opening new government offices is to bring services closer to the people and save them the extra costs they incur in accessing the services and time,” Farah said.
On his part Matatu Sacco Chairman, Ahmed Dahir, regretted that many of their members have fallen prey to cartels who end up conning them under the pretext that they will assist them to acquire driving licenses and other related services.