Monday, December 30, 2013

MOTOR ACCIDENT CLAIMED 14 LIVES IN CENTRAL REGION

By: Richard Nyarko & Kwamina Bamfo-Agyei

The Ghana Police Service in Komenda Edina Eguafo Abrem have confirmed that a motor accident that occurred around 12:45pm on December 30th 2013 on the Komenda road in the central region of Ghana claimed 14 lives.
Meanwhile an unconfirmed report indicated that the accident claimed 23 lives.
Around 12:45pm an accident occurred on the komenda road in the central region  involving an articulator truck with registration number GR631-12 and a sprinter bus from takoradi heading to Accra with registration WR-252-13.
According to eyewitness report the bus was overtaking when it collided with the truck resulting in the fatal accident, which claimed 23 lives including the articulator driver.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

ARRIVE ALIVE- 2014


PRESS RELEASE 
The National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) extends its best wishes and felicitations to all road users and the motoring public this yuletide.
Road safety has become a major global issue due to its impact on households, families and economies of countries. Its impact has social and economic consequences, which if unaddressed, affects the sustainable development of countries.
Every day, road crashes account for about 3,200 lives globally and about 1.2 million deaths yearly leaving several million others incapacitated. It is estimated that in developing countries, road traffic crashes cost roughly 65 billion dollars each year.
Without doubt, road traffic crashes is a major challenge to national development. The NRSC has as its mandate to halt the current unacceptable levels of Road Traffic Fatalities and Injuries by 2015, and thereafter, reduce it by 50% by the end of 2020
We appreciate the partnership of our Road Safety Icon for the region, DaasebreKwebuEwusi VII, key stakeholders, Transport Organizations and Unions, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority, Road Agencies, National Ambulance Service, Ghana Red Cross Society, Ghana National Fire Service, the media and all who have worked towards raising the overall profile of road safety in 2013.
We are entreating you all as road users to beware of the following as they are the hindrances during such festivities:
We are entreating you all as road users to beware of the following as they are the hindrances during such festivities:

1.   As passengers, speak up when you realize your driver is misbehaving by way of speed or overtaking wrongfully/using mobile phone.

2.   Ensure that you don’t join a vehicle that is overloaded and also a vehicle whose driver is either drunk or tired; since a greater number of people will be traveling to and from the region, most drivers would like to go and come back fast to transport the people even when they are tired, they will not rest so beware of them. The Road Traffic Regulation requires them to take about fifteen to thirty minutes rest after two -fours of driving/or when tiredness sets in.

3.   Should you be embarking on any convention, ensure the vehicles are not overloaded and as much as possible, don’t travel in the night.

4.   As pedestrians, do well to wear brightly colored clothing when walking in the night, use torch light for it helps. Walk facing on-coming vehicles and be sure to cross the roads at the designated places.

5.   Know that an excess passenger commits an offence, and can be arrested alongside the driver and be fined or imprisoned.

6.   Do not board or alight from a vehicle at an unauthorized place.

7.   A pedestrian who jaywalks or ignores traffic light signal commits an offence.

8.   A passenger should not use offensive, quarrelsome language or gesture to provoke or insult others.

9.   Don’t interfere with the comfort of other passengers, and also do not enter into conversation with the driver.

The NRSC is embarking on the following strategies and programmes during this yuletide:

a)   Step up outreach and sensitization on Passenger and Pedestrian safety with our stakeholders.

b)   Collaborating with Transport Organizations to raise the profile of pre-departure checks.

c)   Empowering passengers and pedestrians with safety awareness messages in the media.

d)   Visiting the transport terminals to ascertain level of compliance with road safety standards and guidelines.

Road safety is a shared responsibility.
Road Safety, My Responsibility, Your Responsibility.