Justice Lenaola said that his judgement was based on public interest as they had not complied with any of the regulations.
“All these applicants have not shown any license issued by any authority. A person applying for a license is required to state whether they require it for night or day.”
PSVs operators through their lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui filed the application last week describing the ban as an abuse of power by the Ministry of Transport.
The PSVs operators further took issue with the timing and implementation of the ban arguing that they were not given sufficient time to get their papers in order.
This comes as death on road accidents fatalities recorded a decline since the travel ban with 141 road accident fatalities recorded since the year begun, compared to last year’s 203 over the same period.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Michael Kamau announced the figures at a press conference on Thursday saying that the decline was as a result of the initiatives taken by his ministry, the National Transport and Safety Authority and law enforcers since last August.
Among these initiatives was the reintroduction of the dreaded alcoblow, a ban on night travel by unlicensed PSVs, the use of speed cameras and the establishment of mobile courts along all the main highways.
Kamau said that the government had not licensed any PSV to operate at night so far and that none of them would be licensed until they meet the required regulations.
Kamau explained the PSV operators would not be allowed to run their businesses after 9pm without obtaining the special night license.
He noted that some of the companies made their drivers take on long distances without giving them sufficient time to rest which meant that exhausted drivers ended up ferrying passengers.
“For example some drivers drive from Nairobi to Kigali and then they are asked to drive back. All we are asking the PSV operators is to comply and if not then they should make plans that will see them travel between 6am and 9pm,” he said.
“Nobody has banned night travel but anybody who is doing long distance (any journey that is more than 60 kilometres) will not get a license to travel at night unless they fulfil those conditions,” maintained Kamau.
