Ahead of the 2023 Oguaa Fetu Afahye in Cape Coast, the National Road Safety Authority in the Central Region is urging road users especially drivers to be careful while using the roads during the festive season.
The Central Regional Assistant Planning Manager for Regulation, Inspection and Compliance of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), Dennis Tenkorang Osei says as drivers take part in the celebration, they should at the same time ensure to pay attention to all road traffic regulations to avoid any crashes.
He was responding to the reasons regarding the surge in road traffic crashes in the Central Region for July 2023 during an interview with ATL FM NEWS on Tuesday, August 22.
Data from the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service indicates that for July 2023, Central Region recorded an increase in road traffic cases by 88.4% as compared to July 2022 with 107 people losing their lives.
According to Mr. Tenkorang Osei, the surge can be attributed to factors such as overspeeding on the roads, wrongful overtaking, fatigue driving, poor road infrastructures, and inadequate enforcement of road traffic regulations.
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He said for his outfit to curb the surge, they plan to “enhance road safety education and awareness campaign to educate road users about safety driving practices like effective driving and importance of using seat belt.”
He also touched on the need to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to improve road infrastructure in the Central Region. He says, this will involve repairing damaged roads and installing traffic signals.
On enforcing road traffic regulations, he said the National Road Safety Authority is ready to strengthen the enforcement by increasing the presence of Police on the highways and other areas so that detection of reckless driving can easily be noticed.
Mr Tenkorang Osei notes that increasing the presence of the Police on the roads can also help to ensure that traffic regulations are strictly adhered to.
“For some period now, our presence on the high way together with the Police MTTD, the National Insurance Commission (NIC), and the DVLA has reduced.” he lamented.
He says because their presence there was helping to promote safety on roads in the region, it will be good to revive this exercise so they can help reduce crashes during festive seasons and on any other day.
He added it is needful for the Road safety authority to also focus on data collection and analysis to monitor road crashes trend identified on the high-risk areas.
“I think this will enable us to allocate resources effectively and target interventions where they are most needed,” Mr Dennis Tenkorang Osei continued.
He however called on all road users to be safety conscious when using the roads.
Mr. Osei also called on drivers to support the NRSA with the Authority’s road safety campaign by obeying all the road safety regulations so safety on roads can be achieved in the Region.
Source: Rosemond Asmah/ATLFMNEWS
