Statistics released by the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service show that 263 persons have lost their lives through road accidents in the month of April alone.
The current development shows an upsurge of total number of road fatalities each month since the turn of the year. This brings the total number of road accident deaths to 1,034 between January and April this year. Some 5,668 persons have also sustained injuries as result of the road accidents.
Facts
As at the end of August last year, 9,205 road crashes were recorded, resulting in 1,585 deaths. The situation represented a drop of 8.79 per cent in road accidents and deaths between January and June last year, compared with the same period in 2019. The figure dropped from 1,251 in the first half of last year to 1,141 in the same period of 2020.
The Director of Operations at MTTD, Dr Samuel Sasu Mensah, has indicated that the rate of accidents keep surging which is alarming and calls for a national action.
“Road traffic accidents have been increasing at a fast rate. When we review the statistics, things are not looking good at all. We have enforced the laws, carried out public education and awareness creation, but it doesn’t seem to be changing anything,” he said.
Meanwhile, a lot of experts in road safety have said the problem identified with the canker of road fatalities is indiscipline among users and above all the irresponsibility among policy makers and implementers.
They have called for a national action which should include thorough education, advocacy and enforcement against road users and policy makers to lead to a positive change in behaviour.
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