Speeding contributes to about 39 percent of road crash fatalities nationwide, research conducted by the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has revealed.
The Authority, therefore, advised commercial drivers to reduce speed, and remained watchful, to help reduce road crashes and control the needless deaths that occurred on the highways, as Christmas approached.
Madam Abigail Atinpoka, the Acting head of the Bono Regional Office of the NRSA, disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani on the sidelines of road an exhibition and road safety sensitization to mark the 2023 commemoration of the World of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims on the theme “remember, support, act”.
Since the adoption of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, pursuant to General Assembly resolution 60/5, the observance held on November 3, annually, has spread to a growing number of countries on every continent.
The Day has become a valuable tool in global efforts to reduce road casualties and offers an opportunity for drawing attention to the scale of emotional and economic devastation caused by road crashes and for giving recognition to the suffering of road crash victims.
Mad Atinpoka expressed regret that driver error and negligence continued to contribute to road crashes and fatalities despite road safety sensitization at bus terminals and lorry stations in the region.
The Regional office of the Authority held the exhibition exercise at the Sunyani Main lorry station to highlight accident scenes and victims for the drivers, passengers, and the public to appreciate and support to help bring sanity on the road.
Mad Atinpoka indicated besides the loss of lives and injuries, road crashes had a huge devastating and economic impact on the nation, families, and households.
The exhibition, therefore, seeks to create public awareness about the reality and impact of road crashes to send signals to the commercial drivers, she stated.
Comparatively, Mad Atinpoka said though general crashes in the region had seen some marginal reduction this year, fatalities remained high, disturbing, and unacceptable.
She said 29 people perished through 102 recorded crashes between January and September this year, with more than 99 various degrees of injuries, as compared to the 2022 figures of 103 crashes which caused 59 deaths and 139 injuries within the same period.
“This is an indication that we need to do more, and the authority requires everybody’s contribution for an accident and fatality-free Xmas”, Mad Atinpoka stated.
Some of the commercial drivers commended the Authority for the exhibition exercise which, according to them, had reminded and scared them.
They, however, expressed concern about the deplorable and worsened conditions of roads in the region, and called on the government to put them in good shape.