2,000 people die annually through road accidents – NRSC
Mr Noble John Appiah, Executive Director of National Road Safety Commission, on Thursday said about 2,000 people die through road traffic crashes every year.
“Everyday two road users die and 60 are killed monthly using the roads as pedestrians,” he said.
Mr Appiah disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Accra during the painting of Pedestrian Crossing points organised as part of activities marking the Second United Nation Global Road Safety Week.
It also forms part of the 60-day National Pedestrian Safety Campaign which was launched on May 2, this year.
The campaign, which aims at increasing awareness on pedestrian road usage, is on the theme: “Be Alert! Look Out for Other Road Users.”
The campaign also calls on motorists and pedestrians to be responsible while in traffic and also harness efforts to manage the reduction of pedestrian deaths in the country.
Mr Appiah said the significance of the exercise was to draw attention to the importance of the pedestrian crossing points and the need to prioritise them in the design and construction of roads.
He called on pedestrians to prioritise their use where they were available to keep them safe and help reduce their vulnerability as road users.
Mr Appiah said almost 60% of all deaths on urban roads were pedestrian related adding that 73% of those crashes occurred while pedestrians crossed the road or walked along the edge of the road.
He said 27% of fatalities occurred at night in conditions where there were no street lights while driver inattentiveness and speeding together accounted for 65% of all crashes attributed to drivers’ error.
Mr Appiah said there was the need to enforce the laws and by-laws that discouraged jaywalking and the abuse of pedestrian walkways by traders and hawkers among other persons.
He called on the media to assist the NRSC, the police and other stakeholders to educate the pedestrians on best practices and safety systems to minimise road use associated risks.
Source: GNA