Road Users Should Be More Careful- NRSC

Mr Kwasi Yirenkyi, Eastern Regional Director of National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), has expressed worry about the careless attitude exhibited by people towards road safety measures. According to him the NRSC had offered extensive education on road safety measures to road users yet they are �more often being careless and not cautious�. �Most Ghanaians seem to take things for granted; motorists know what to do and as well know the consequences of what they do yet they mostly decide to do vice,� he said. Mr Yirenkyi, who made this known in an interview with Ghana News Agency in Koforidua, urged road users to make their safety a priority to spare their lives for the socio-economic development of Ghana. Giving the regional motor accident statistics for the first half of the year, the Director said even though the road safety target was met, it was not really impressive. �We targeted that if at all we should record accident deaths, it should not exceed 128 for the half year but from January to the end of June� the region recorded a total of 116 deaths, which is an improvement but not impressive,� he explained. He said his outfit would vigorously intensify road safety education to ensure that no death is recorded in the next half of year, adding that, the commission is devising appropriate strategies to achieve the feat by end of 2015. According to the motor accident statics as provided by the Motor Traffic and Transport Department of the Ghana Police Service in the region, a total of 740 vehicles were involved in accident in the first half of the year as against 1,063 recorded in 2014, indicating a 30 per cent reduction in cases reported. Ninety-four of the accidents recorded were fatal in the period under review as against 114 recorded last year representing 17 per cent decrease. A total of 130 pedestrian were knocked down in first half of 2015 as compared to 173 who were knocked down in 2014, showing 24 per cent reduction. The region saw a marginal 17 per cent reduction in number of deaths when it recorded 116 in 2015 as compared to 144 deaths in 2014 and the number injured was 1,001 in 2015 as against 1,247 in 2014 making up a 19 per cent decrease.