I agree with you Fika; I believe in one of my comments I actually mentioned that for an extra sum given to the driver who not bend the rules and show the client what they want!

Question - are most safari driver - normal drivers or are safari drivers also trained to follow the rules lined out by the Kenya Professional Safari Guide Association?
What is the difference between the 2?

I am sure that there are some big private tourist companies in Kenya who will try and pay the least and get anyone to drive and take clients out even if they have no training; which in turn perhaps ruins the reputation of the real safari guides.

Unfortuntely, it is not only the irresponsible drivers / tourists that venture off road and / or harass wildlife. I witnessed park personel, even a couple of researchers, way off boundry in the Mara, on many occasions,... with this, others follow... no one seemed interested in reporting anyone... I received the 'it's the lion's job', 'everyone does it' or simply a giggle, in response, when I tried to talk to some of these folks.

In Tsavo, I personally, have not witnessed much of this, other than loud engines being left on for long periods.
Thanks for the info on Tsavo, Jan... I've only seen occasions of P drivers / guides napping, while stopped. I know there is a 'banned tour company' or 'Dennis' list' in effect, of those who have misbehaved.

I think the 'responsible' drivers should be the ones who lure in the tips! Perhaps a breif orientation of 'wildlife viewing' ethics from park personel at the gate for the the tourists, as an incentive...

The problem is many of this companies are not members of Kenya professional safari guides association and there is very little that can be done as long as they are not members.
Kws should make it a policy to have only kpsga guides take tourists in the parks that way there will be some control

I agree with the suggestions to have a code of conduct, but so long as people continue to encourage bad driving (im talking about tourists / tour companies) it will be difficult.
I have witnessed tourists offering incentives ($$) to tour drivers to get closer to the action irrespective of how it is done. Whether the tour companies are the big names or the briefcase operators each driver is out to impress his guests the most. With tips ranging from $20 to $100 for a "good game drive" it is very difficult for drivers not to break certain rules. I think that if you do see the van / driver misbehaving get a picture or note down the registration number of the van. The name of the company alone may not suffice, as nowadays companies are not buying their own vans, rather they are hiring them and just sticking on their logos. The park rangers at the gates will then have the actual registration numbers of the vehicles and act accordingly (hopefully), even if the van visits an area weeks after the original incident.
PS. Samburu I feel is the park with the worst record of drivers. Due to the high prevalence of leopards, one sighting, the radios crackle and in minutes the poor leopard is totally surrounded by the vans. A shame!

Raj, you are absolutely correct (unfortunately).

May I add that it is helpful to note down date and time besides making a photo of the driver? The same car could be driven by someone else later on and it would then be difficult to pin down the driver that ignored the rules.

Years ago the car was banned from the park if reported for ignoring rules. Is this still the case?
I think it is much more efficient than punishing the driver. If the driver alone gets the blame the company will simply sack him and get someone else. If the company can't make use of the car anymore, they will make sure no driver breaks the rules.

Raj and Simba:

I like the idea of the vehicle being banned from the park and not just the driver because it might ensure the owner made sure his driver/guides knew they would lose their jobs if anyone reported them and he lost money due to their actions. However, I don't think just reporting it at the gate would get the desired result. When I have complained before I've gone to the top at KWS.

The one certain way of seeing that good guiding is observed is if KWS could afford to put several vehicles with rangers in each park/reserve to patrol the favorite haunts of tourists at game drive time and oversee what is going on. If they saw 30 vehicles surrounding the lions or leopards they could move them off, and if anyone gave them a hard time they could arrest or fine them (the fines might even pay for the vehicle, gas and ranger). However, with KWS being so broke now, I know it won't happen. With the $60.00 a day they are now charging us tourists, we don't see any return on our money. The wildlife is suffering terribly (though with the drought it is not completely the fault of KWS). (However, waiting over five days to have someone come and euthanize a suffering animal is unforgiveable). KWS doesn't answer their park phones on weekends. The roads are again atrocious. The road to the Amboseli airstrip is horrible. It doesn't say much for KWS wanting tourists to return.

We had an incident a week and a half ago in Tsavo where we discovered a dead elephant quite a distance from the road and couldn't tell if it was male or female, how old or whether the tusks had already been taken by poachers. I asked the manager who was going to call KWS if he could move off-road just to get the necessary information for KWS. His reply was that he could, but if he drove off road to get this information for KWS, other drivers would see the tracks and just follow them -- thus encouraging more off-road driving. Thus we didn't get close to get more definitive information.

In the meantime I'll continue to report driver/guides that appear to be harrassing wildlife and will take the suggestion to take a picture of the vehicle and license plate number also. Great suggestion.