Road crashes claim 121 lives in Central Region
A total of 121 including 50 females were lost in the Central Region through road accidents from January to June this year.
Seventy deaths including 14 females were recorded, same period in 2016.
The Central Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) David Ampah-Bennin disclosed this to the GNA on the sidelines of the opening of a five-day capacity building workshop for some executives of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) in Cape Coast.
Giving further statistics, he said over 524 cases of road accidents had been recorded in the first half.
The figure saw a rise of 155 over the 369 motor accidents reported during the same period last year.
The Regional Police Commander described the situation as “unfortunate and regrettable”, adding that the deaths as well as the people injured could have been avoided if drivers had obeyed simple road traffic regulations.
He advised pedestrians, commuters and particularly, drivers to exercise greater discipline saying a good driver was not the one who hurriedly dropped-off passengers within the shortest possible time but the one who reached his destination safely.
Alhaji Issah Musah Khaleepha, National Chairman of the GPRTU reminded the participants of the need to take the training seriously and stressed that an efficient transport system should inject resources to the transformation of an economy.
He added that efficiency of the managers of transport systems and unions was pivotal in increasing national productivity, savings and income of the citizenry.
The National Chairman also encouraged them to improve their customer service skills to enable the union enjoy its rightful position as the pacesetter in the promotion of quality and affordable road transport systems in Ghana.
Mr Thomas Agyei Baffour, Deputy Central Regional Minister admonished managers of lorry terminals and transport unions to avoid infighting and help coordinate government’s efforts at revamping the transport sector in Ghana.
He also urged transport owners to conduct diligent maintenance checks on their vehicles before departure and also ensure that drivers had enough rest before embarking on journeys to prevent needless accidents on the roads.
Osabarima Kwasi Atta II, Omanhen of the Oguaa Traditional Area urged drivers to be careful on the road and avoid unnecessary overtaking, over-speeding and overloading since they were the major causes of road accidents.
Source: GNA