Accident fatality rate worrying - MTTD boss
Fatalities resulting from road accidents in the country for the first quarter of this year point to a worrying trend, according to the Commanding Officer of the Accra Central Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service, ACP Anderson Fosu-Ackaah.
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From January to March this year, over 500 lives were lost on the roads through crashes, according to the MTTD's provisional records.
General indiscipline by motorists, particularly regarding driving and riding through traffic intersections when the light turns red, is a major factor. This and many others, mostly human error and therefore preventable and avoidable, are needlessly destroying lives.
ACP Anderson Fosu-Ackaah shared the horrifying news Sunday, while addressing personnel of the Accra Central MTTD at their 2016 West Africa Security Services Association celebrations (WASSA).
According to him, managing traffic effectively within the Greater Accra Region is increasingly becoming more challenging for the Department in particular and the Ghana Police Service in general.
Subsequently, he called for urgent and pragmatic strategies to curb road accidents and improve the smooth flow of traffic.
Director General of the MTTD, Mr Patrick Adusei Sarpong, reminded personnel of the impending general election this year and the challenges it poses, including increased indiscipline on the roads especially during campaigns and rallies.
He said there is a need for a paradigm shift in the operations of the Department by developing appealing strategies that will ensure safety of both pedestrians and motorists on the roads.
He urged personnel to also intensify their education targeted at pedestrians for their safe use of the road, explaining that they need to redouble efforts at education and enforcement to make the rest of the year free from motor crashes.
Personnel had undertaken a clean up of the offices and immediate environs of the MTTD Accra Central office earlier in the morning.
