The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has released a set of instructions to parents and schools as thousands of children head back to school for Term 1 2026.

This instructions, NTSA says, are geared towards the safety of school-going children. The authority insists that private motorists, public transport operators, school administrators, and parents/guardians all share a significant responsibility in safeguarding the safety of children during this busy season.

“We urge all road users to strictly comply with traffic rules, plan their journeys adequately and avoid night travel due to reduced visibility,” NTSA says in a statement released on December 30, 2026.

Vehicle owners to be proactive

Following the long holiday break, vehicle owners are expected to have proactively ensured that any vehicles used for transporting children are properly maintained, roadworthy, and fully licensed, including valid insurance, road service licenses and inspection certificates.

To further protect school children, NTSA is strongly appealing to parents and guardians not to permit their children to board any non-compliant vehicles. Previous compliance checks and inspections, the Authority says, highlighted major defects in school transport vehicles, including faulty or non-transmitting speed limiters, defective brakes, missing or faulty seat belts, unstable seats, malfunctioning door locks among other critical safety issues.

“We advise motor vehicle owners to take advantage of the next few days before schools reopen and present their vehicles for the mandatory annual inspection, as all NTSA motor vehicle inspection centers are open and operational,” the statement reads in part.

NTSA is also directing speed limiter vendors to ensure that all gadgets installed on vehicles fully comply with the requirements of KS 2295:2018 including proper functioning, speed limiting, data storage, and real-time transmission to the NTSA system.

“By adhering to these measures and working together, we can significantly reduce risks and ensure the safe return of our children to school. We assure the Nation that multi-agency road safety compliance checks will continue uninterrupted to uphold the highest standards of safety for our children.”