For the second year running, Isuzu East Africa is rolling out the “Eyes on the Road Campaign” to promote driver wellness and vehicle safety aimed at enhancing safety among the general public and customers across the country. The launch event was held at the Mombasa Road premises of Isuzu EA’s authorized dealer Kenya Coach Industries (KCI).
The “Eyes on the Road Campaign” is part of the Isuzu Wellness Month set for April. The campaign will focus on intensifying safety standards among school bus drivers, public service vehicles, and medium and heavy-duty truck drivers.
In partnership with AutoXpress and Bridgestone, the campaign will provide comprehensive medical wellness checkups to ensure drivers are fit for driving and that they are free of medical conditions that may negatively impact their driving abilities hence boosting road safety. The campaign will also conduct vehicle inspections across the Isuzu dealer network around the country.
Speaking during the campaign launch, Isuzu East Africa’s Director of Aftersales & Channel Development Julius Mwangi said the campaign is part of the company’s promise to Isuzu customers to provide enhanced services in transport solutions to ensure that vehicles and drivers are fit for the road.
“As a trusted logistics partner, we aim to deliver products and services with a strong commitment to exceed expectations in transportation products and solutions that we provide. In turn, we expect that the campaign will complement road safety interventions being conducted by multiple organizations in the country to support daily mobility and safeguard the lives of Kenyans,” Mr Mwangi said.
“Therefore, there is a need to support our customers to operate their vehicles for efficiency in performance and sustainability of their businesses. The campaign is a demonstration of our commitment to the well-being, and safety of students, passengers, and drivers,” Mr Mwangi explained. The campaign will also emphasize attentiveness among drivers, and the risks of non-driving activities while on the roads such as phone use and texting.
On his part, the Managing Director of the Kenya Coach Industries (KCI) Narain Sokhi said. “We will continue to guide and support drivers as well as our customers to attain their goals through instilling road safety measures while ensuring vehicles are in good shape for optimal performance.”
Similarly, AutoXpress Managing Director, Sandeep Shah, acknowledged the Driver Wellness campaign saying it was a step toward zero road accidents while at the same time improving fitness in terms of health and check-up exercise. AutoXpress, which is an importer, distributor, and retailer of tires and other automotive accessories, plays a key role in ensuring the safety of both drivers and passengers.
“Safety is a value that is reflected in all our operations. That is why this campaign is very important to us. The potentially life-saving health check-up exercise certainly improves fitness and road safety and, on that account, we are always obliged to keep the drivers and everyone around them safe on the roads,” noted Mr. Shah.
The “Eyes on the Road Campaign” is also set to reduce the increasing collisions on roads. Pedestrians and motorcyclists suffer due to road accidents, leading to widespread grief among families and significant economic impacts due to lost productivity, healthcare costs, and the demise of the breadwinners.
Through its Driver Academy, Isuzu East Africa in March this year conducted its fourth graduation of Isuzu-certified drivers which targets the company’s customers to impart logistical, and defensive skills, and instill the right motoring values for commercial vehicle drivers. Since its establishment in 2019, the Isuzu Drivers Academy has trained 151 drivers through an intensive one-week practical course. 21 are female drivers under a partnership with Bamburi Cement’s Women on Wheels (WoW) Program which started in 2021.
