By Solomon Gumah
Tamale, May 9, GNA – Installation works for additional traffic lights system have begun in the Tamale Metropolis after a youth group petitioned the authorities in the area.
The installation works are currently ongoing at a popular intersection point in the Metropolis known as the “Sara Junction,” which connects the area to the Northern Regional Coordinating Council (NRCC).
The intersection for some years now has witnessed unregulated and heavy vehicular traffic, which has resulted in several crashes, claiming many lives.
Activista Ghana, a youth advocacy group in the Northern Region on 13 March 2024, petitioned the Regional Minister, Alhaji Shani Alhassan Shaibu and the Tamale Mayor, Mr Salifu Sule on the need to install more traffic lights in some parts of the Metropolis, as part of measures to minimise road crashes in the area.
Mr Salifu Sule, the Mayor of Tamale, who received the petition, was full of praise and admiration for the group for demonstrating their love for the Metropolis.
The petition, which was monitored and published by the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Tamale on March 17, 2024, formed part of the group’s campaign on enforcing road safety regulations, fixing defunct traffic lights and streetlights, road signs and makings in the area.
Mr Issahaku Abdul – Latif, the Northern Regional Coordinator of Activista Ghana, after witnessing progress of work, told GNA he was impressed at the level of commitment by authorities in ensuring that more lives were not lost through avoidable road crashes.
He was optimistic that all the areas demarcated by the group for the installation of traffic lights would receive the attention of the authorities to ensure that road crashes and crime were reduced drastically.
He disclosed that the organisation, as part of its efforts to promote road safety, has trained about 75 young people, some certified, to carry out road safety education in the region, emphasizing the need to fix broken down traffic lights.
The coordinator appealed to other youth groups in the country to prioritise adopting legitimate means in demanding accountability and development from duty bearers without resorting to violence.
GNA