By Ewoenam Kpodo, GNA
Ho, April 25, GNA – Road crashes have become a quiet national emergency, and a leading engineer says one overlooked culprit is rolling under our noses: illegally modified suspension systems on commercial Voxy vans.
Dr Bright Atsu Sogbey, a Research Engineer at the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission in an interview with Ghana News Agency warned that the surge in fatalities was not just human error but also “mechanical recklessness, regulatory lapses, and a culture of modification that puts looks and profit over safety.”
His warning came at the back of National Road Safety Authority declaring the use of Toyota Voxy vehicles for long-distance commercial transport illegal as of April 2026 while private use remained legal, with these vans now restricted to intra-city travels only.
Key reasons for the declaration included safety hazards (local artisans often convert these vehicles from Right-Hand Drive (RHD) to Left-Hand Drive (LHD) using unregulated methods that compromise steering and braking systems), design limitations, high crash rates and regulatory breaches.
For this ban, passengers were being advised not to patronise Voxy vans for inter-city commute while commercial registration of newly converted RHD to LHD had been suspended with the police ordered to arrest and impound vehicles with private plates carrying commercial passengers.
Dr Sogbey said at the centre of the road carnage were suspension systems alterations that throw vehicles off balance – often with fatal results, explaining a vehicle’s suspension to be a calibrated system of springs, shocks, and linkages designed to keep tyres glued to the road, absorb shocks, and hold stability at speed, with manufacturers setting a precise centre of gravity so the van stays planted during curves, braking, and evasive moves.
“However, when the suspension system is altered whether by raising or lowering the vehicle beyond manufacturer specifications, this balance is disrupted,” the President of Africa Development Council said mentioning the dangerous effects of altered suspension systems to include shift in centre of gravity, reduced stability at high speeds, uneven weight distribution, and accelerated wear and mechanical failure.
He said the Voxy van, a popular choice in the commercial transport sector due to its affordability and passenger capacity, had increasingly become associated with unsafe modifications to maximise profit and/or enhance appearance.
“This practice has dire consequences. Reports of accidents involving such vehicles often point to loss of control, instability, and rollover incidents – clear indicators of compromised vehicle dynamics.”
Dr Sogbey called for immediate, nationwide action to ground all Voxy vans and similar commercial vehicles for rigorous inspection focused on suspension systems stressing; the move was preventive, not punitive.
He also recommended strict enforcement of manufacturer specifications, certification and monitoring of vehicle modifications, sanctions for non-compliance and public education campaigns.
Dr Sogbey said the fight against road carnage was not the responsibility of government alone but a shared duty, one that called for the active participation of engineers, transport operators, regulatory authorities and the public.
“We must move from reactive lamentation to proactive prevention. Every life lost on our roads is a tragedy that could, in many cases, have been avoided through adherence to safety standards and responsible engineering practices.
Let us, therefore, heed this urgent call. Let us restore discipline to our roads, integrity to our engineering practices, and above all, value to human life.
The road carnage must stop, and it must stop now,” he concluded.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/Kenneth Odeng Adade