The National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has revealed that more than 200 people die monthly in road accidents in Ghana.
This was disclosed by the Acting Director General of the NRSA, Mr Davis Osafo Adonteng, on Wednesday, September 21, 2022.
Mr. Adonteng said the figure was for a period between January 1, 2022, and August 31, 2022, which accounted for 1,600 deaths.
He stated that the figure represents a 16% decrease as compared to the same period in 2021, which recorded 1,800 deaths.
The Director General stated that most accidents are caused mainly by wrongful overtaking and over-speeding by some drivers.
He added that fatigue was also another factor that caused carnage on the roads.
To reduce the carnage, Mr Adonteng maintained that reducing over-speeding, over-taking and reckless driving is the only way out.
We have always maintained that if these are curbed, accidents will definitely reduce.
“It is heartwarming to note that road accidents are on the decline this year (2022) as compared to last year (2021), but more needs to be done,” he explained on Otec FM in Kumasi.
Background
A total of 1,443 persons lost their lives in road crashes between the period of January and July 2022, the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) has revealed.
According to the MTTD, the police service received reports of 886 road crashes during that period.
The Director of Operations for MTTD, Supt. Dr. Samuel Sasu Mensah said the number of road crashes would reduce should motorists drive cautiously.
“From January to July 2022, we had 886 cases being reported to the Police and out of this, those who were killed were 1,443, and those who got injured were 9,218.”
However, we have a marginal decrease in both fatalities and injuries. So as we progress in the year, we hope that, through good practices by the drivers, road crashes being recorded in the country will be reduced,” he spoke to Accra-based Citi FM.
Accident trends
A total of 2,924 lives were lost through road carnage in 2021. The figure was a 12.9% increase in deaths compared to the previous year, which recorded 2,589 deaths.
Some 15,680 persons suffered injuries in 2021 from 15,972 accidents. There were 1,106 more accidents and an increase of 163 more injuries compared to 2020.
Some major accidents over the period
- Six children dead in a ghastly car accident
On May 13 2022, reports of the death of six school children, between ages four and 15, including three siblings, broke out.
They are said to have died after a car ran over them, killing them on the spot at Matamallam, a suburb of Krachi West Municipality of the Oti Region.
One other, Emmanuel Wasah, sustained injuries and was taken to the Kete Krachi Hospital.
The Toyota Saloon car, with registration number GR 2392-22, which knocked them down, was said to have encountered a mechanical fault.
Preliminary investigations revealed the children were closed from the Matamallam D/A School and were walking home when the driver lost control of the vehicle and ran into them.
- A road crash in February killed 17 passengers and injured 44 others early Wednesday, February 3.
A police statement said the accident occurred when two passenger buses travelling in opposite directions collided head-on in a town near Buipe, a community along the Kumasi-Tamale highway.
Sixteen persons died on the spot, while one more died at a hospital where the injured were receiving treatment.
The deceased included 12 males, five females, and one child.
The accident involved two buses with registration numbers GT 3345-16 and AC 1699-20.
They were travelling from Kumasi to Zebila and from Garu to Kumasi, respectively, when they ran into each other.