About 1,300 persons have been killed through road traffic crashes from January to June this year. This represents 10.59 per cent decrease in the number of persons killed by road crashes within the same period last year.

Additionally, 7,997 persons sustained various injuries through road accidents within the same period, a 2.3 per cent decrease in the number.

This was contained in provisional statistics on road safety from January to June 2022 released in Accra yesterday by the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA).

The deaths and injuries, according to the statistics, were as a result of 7,687 crashes which occurred across the country involving 13,248 vehicles.

Also, within the same period, 1,356 pedestrians were also knocked down by vehicles, representing a 7.7 per cent decrease in the number of cases.

Despite the overall 6.12 per cent decreases in the number of road crashes cases reported, the number of vehicles involved increased by 5.19 per cent.

Private vehicles made up 44.25 per cent of vehicle types involved in crashes from January to June 2022 with 5,862 while 4,619 commercial vehicles were involved, representing 34.87 per cent.

Motorcycles which were also involved in reported cars of road crashes amounted to 2,767.

Per the statistics, motorcycles constituted 20.89 per cent of vehicle types involved in road crashes, the least of all.

"This notwithstanding, the share of motorcycle crashes is alarming taking into consideration the population of motorcycles of the total vehicle population," the statistics noted.

The Greater Accra Region recorded the most road crashes and fatalities with 3,267 and 252 representing 42.50 and 19.38 per cent followed by the Ashanti, Eastern and Central.

The Oti Region was the last in the regional distribution of crashes with 26, representing 0.34 per cent while the North East Region recorded 18 deaths.