Public Agenda (Accra)
Ebenezer Nana Wilson
8 February 2010
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The causes of road accidents are well known to us yet we seem helpless in finding lasting solutions that could stem the tide of these accidents and their accompanying fatalities.
Media reports indicate that by the third quarter of 2009, about 128,200 cars were involved in road accidents; there were 9,299 recorded deaths and 6,929 persons sustained various degrees of injuries.
Some of the documented reasons attributed to these numerous road accidents include mechanical faults, over speeding, wrong overtaking, drunk-driving, defects of vision and incorrect interpretation of road signs resulting in crossing roads without looking out for oncoming traffic.
Speaking on Joy FM midday news on Monday, Jan 4, 2010, the Minister of Transport, Hon. Mike Hammah stated that in order to curb the spate of road accidents, a National Driving Academy will be given the responsibility of educating drivers on the signs, skills and art of driving.
In this Academy, he said, drivers will be taught subjects bordering on competence and professionalism. Commercial vehicle drivers, he added, would need a license before they could ply their trade as they are mainly responsible for the most of our road accidents.
These are laudable interventions. My only worry, however, is that this measure is targeted only at commercial drivers.
It is refreshing to note that as a nation, we continue to develop new paradigms by which road accidents could be reduced. We should however not lose sight of basic things that have the potential of causing road accidents.
For instance, some of the speed ramps (also referred to as sleeping policemen) on the Mallam -Yamoransa road used to have white paint on them making them visible especially at night to motorists. This has faded and the Ghana Highways Authority (GHA) seems unaware of this development. It is important that the speed ramps on that stretch of road are repainted without delay. Also the road linking Mankessin to Assin Nyankomase and Assin Fosu has deteriorated at an alarming rate and needs maintenance urgently due to the undulating nature of that road.
The prevention of road accidents should be a shared responsibility. To this end, the Road Safety Commission should ensure that drivers whose cars breakdown on our roads pay for towing services. The practice where cars are repaired in the middle of and on the shoulder of our roads should be made illegal as those places are not mechanic shops. This however requires some legislation backing towing services on our trunk roads and highways.
The onus does not lie on the Road Safety Commission alone, the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) the Progressive Transport Owners Association (PROTOA) and other allied bodies should be involved in working to create this legislature.
One important thing I think they should do is to continue to appeal to its members to uphold safe practices on the roads at all times. They should also stop, with police support, the sale of alcoholic beverages at their bus terminals to reduce drink driving drastically
Some vehicles by their dilapidated nature are nothing but death traps, yet they are seen daily on our roads; they may probably even move with road worthy certificates issued by the Driver and Vehicle licensing Authority (DVLA).
It is however important that the DVLA should live up to its mandate and weed out all such rickety vehicles. It is common knowledge that most drivers over speed and do not obey speed limits. But how many of such drivers have been prosecuted or fined on the spot for not driving within speed limits?
Maybe we can say that perhaps the law enforcers lack the capacity to check over speeding.
If the Police MTTU division, the DVLA, the GHA, the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council (GRTCC), the National Road Safety Commission, and motorists are able to discharge their duties and responsibilities in a manner devoid of corrupt practices, then one could conveniently conclude that the incidence of road accidents will be reduced significantly with fewer or no fatalities.
Let us all work harder at making this year and succeeding years accident free. The time for behavioural change is now otherwise the setting up of a National Driving Academy will achieve little results.
Love yourself, save your life and that of others.
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