Accra, March 29, GNA—The National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) will next week, engage the Media on road safety interventions rolled out ahead of the Easter festivities.
Mrs Pearl Adusu, Head of Corporate Affairs, NRSA, told Ghana News Agency that the interventions would focus more on the celebrations at Kwahu, in the Eastern Region, where a greater influx of both humans and vehicles were expected.
“For the past two years, Easter at Kwahu has not been characterised by the usual enthusiasm it carries. However, with the relaxation in COVID-19 measures by the President, it is expected that people will troupe there in their numbers. The heightened euphoria is likely to cause an increase in road crashes. This is why the interventions would focus more on Kwahu,” she said.
She said between January and February 2021, 2,766 people got injured through road crashes, whereas between January and February 2022, 2,663 people got injured.
The above figures represent a 3.72 per cent decrease in road crash injuries within the same period under review.
Mrs Adusu informed that 517 deaths were recorded through road crashes between January and February 2021, however, from January to February this year, 469 deaths occured.
This, she said, represented a 9.28 per cent decrease in deaths through road crashes over the same period under consideration.
Mrs Adusu said the reduction in the road crash indicators was due to various interventions rolled out by the Authority over the past years.
She said the NRSA was hopeful that the interventions to be outlined ahead of the Easter celebrations would further reduce road crash deaths and injuries, and even affect other indicators.
Statistics from the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service, indicate that Ghana recorded 15,972 road crashes in 2021.
The crashes led to the death of 2,924 people with 15,680 others sustaining injuries.
More than 90 per cent of road crashes are attributable to indiscipline on the part of road users.
Excessive speeding, overtaking without due care to other vehicles, driving tired on the part of drivers, jaywalking, non-wearing of crash helmet and passing red-light, among others, are some of the common man related factors confronting road safety management strategies.
GNA