Public Agenda (Accra)
Wisdom Dzidedi Donkor
7 November 2008
It is currently estimated that road accidents cost the nation approximately 1.6 per cent Gross Domestic Product. It is believed that an improved road safety has a positive impact on the human resource base of the country.
A provisional result from January to December 2007 shows that there had been about12,038 reported road traffic accidents cases and 2,043 fatalities out of which 1,518 of the dead were people aged between 16 and 55years.
About 64 per cent of all these cases occurred on the three major roads namely; Accra-Kumasi, Accra-Cape Coast and Accra-Aflao. 38 per cent of the total fatalities are also recorded on these three major corridors.
The dualization of these roads would reduce the spate of accidents on these major roads to the barest minimum as well as provide efficient and fast movement of people, goods and services to and from the ports of Tema and Takoradi and also boost trade, regional integration and economic development countrywide.
The Minister of Road Transportation Dr. Richard Anane made these revelations at a press briefing in Accra on Tuesday.
Dr. Anane said the ministry through its agencies continues to ensure that issues of road safety are given priority during the design and implementation of road infrastructure provision and transport services.
He noted that the Road Agencies have been engaged in road safety audits and are taking pre-emptive actions as a basis for ensuring that vehicles and pedestrians can use the road facilities safely.
The road agencies he said have over the period of 2005-2007 installed critical road traffic signs, especially in settlements and undertaken extensive road line marking to improve road safety on the trunk roads.
Hazardous locations have also been identified on both urban and trunk road networks. The identified sections have been studied and mitigation measures recommended.
Some of the identified places include Nobewam, Duapompo, Juapong, Akrade, Bessoro, Junction and many more places. The Suhum junction is to be reconstructed into an interchange with a mainstream vehicular over-pass, to reduce the vehicular-vehicular and vehicular-pedestrian interactions.
Regarding enforcement of the road traffic regulation he said his outfit has contributed to the enforcement drive with the provision of logistics such as Alco meters, reflective vests, radar guns, speed clamps and tow trucks to the MTTU of the Ghana Police Service.
Dr. Anane mentioned that with the passage of the Road Traffic Act, 683 in 2004, the Road Traffic Regulations has been reviewed to conform to the new law.
Also as part of the measures to reduce the road traffic accidents the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) has been tasked to coordinate and promote best road safety practices for all categories of road users.
The NRSC with support from stakeholders developed a five year (2001-2005) National Road Safety Strategy, (NRSS 1) and Action Plan.
The overall objective of the NRSS 1 is to break the upward trend in road traffic crashes and to create the basis for concrete, sustainable crash reduction towards 2010.
An evaluation carried out in February 2006 the minister said revealed that the strategy provided a very useful tool for developing and managing road safety efforts in the country over the period.
He said the identified weaknesses in the NRSS 1 formed the basis for setting out the strategic objectives in the NRSS II for the period 2006-2010.
Dr. Anane further explained that in order for the NRSC to strengthen its policy formulation capacity and develop targeted and cost effective programmes, it has developed a comprehensive road traffic accident data system.
The Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI) has been mandated to collect and analyze reliable road traffic accident data on annual basis.
Briefing the press on the Metro Mass Transit's "Free Ride" services to school children, the minister said the public should report any driver or conductor who refuses to pick school children in uniform for free to the ministry for the necessary action to be taken.
He said the MMT provides "Free Ride" for over five hundred thousand school children monthly. "By the end of September 2008, 10.7 million school children had benefited from the programme," he noted.
Dr. Anane mentioned that the share holding structure of the MMT which is a company established under the companies code of 1963 comprises; State Insurance Company, National Investment Bank, Ghana Oil, Agricultural Development Bank, Prudential Bank and SSNIT.
These companies, he said collectively owns 55 per cent shares, whiles the remaining 45 per cent is held by Government of Ghana. The MMT currently operates with a fleet of 1,066.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Public Agenda. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
